The cause of a massive electrical blackout that darkened large portions of Brazil in early November is still being investigated despite initial reports from the national grid operator that lightning and strong winds affected the transmission grid in southern Brazil.
At 10:13 p.m. on Nov. 10, the lights went out in Brazil. For almost three hours a massive swath of the South American country, including 18 of its 26 states, two of its largest metropolitan areas, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, as well as the capital of Brasília, was left in total darkness. The blackout affected an estimated 60 million people, almost a third of the country’s population.