Overview

• A severe blackout on April 28–29, 2025, left northern Spain without electricity, halting elevators across residential and public spaces.
• Firefighters carried out approximately 50 rescue operations, freeing up to 150 individuals trapped in elevators, including children and elderly residents.
• In Valladolid, a five-hour rescue effort required breaking a wall to free a resident stuck in his home elevator.
• In Eibar, five adults and six children were trapped for over three hours in a 40-meter-high glass public elevator before being rescued.
• Electricity has been largely restored as of April 29 evening, and authorities are now reviewing infrastructure vulnerabilities and emergency protocols.