Power cut plunges Brazil into chaos

Brazil ground to a halt yesterday afternoon when up to 100m people were left without electricity in one of the largest power cuts in memory.

An unidentified problem at the Itaipu dam, on the border with Paraguay, cut off electricity for several hours in the populous south and south-east of the country.

The blackout caused chaos in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, Brazil's two largest cities, where traffic lights stopped working, both underground systems closed down and much commerce was forced to shut. Police rushed to take control of the situation.

The power cut happened at 1.30pm, trapping thousands of people in lifts and plunging offices and factories into darkness. Power began to be reconnected after half-an-hour, but after two-and-a-half hours, 40% of Rio and Sao Paulo states were still lacking electricity.

Shortly after the blackout there was a 30-mile traffic jam in Sao Paolo. Mobile phone systems were unable to cope with the demand, since electrically powered conventional phones were not working.

Other large states, including Minas Gerais, Goias, Parana and Rio Grande do Sul were also affected - an area of about 500,000 square miles.

Preliminary investigations into the cause of the incident pointed to a power line coming down at the Itaipu dam.

The president of the dam, Euclides Scalco, said the problem meant that all the complex's 18 turbines had to be switched off.

The power cut comes while Brazil is trying to cope with an energy rationing scheme to combat power shortages and avoid California-style blackouts. In recent weeks, however, higher than expected rainfall has raised water levels at the reservoirs which power Brazil's hydroelectric energy grid.