Doomsday for about 16 hours: Experience from Granada

Dr Abdul Hai, Granada

12:33. 28 April 2025. Monday. No one could mark this time, exactly when the massive power outage started in Granada, but the big monitor showing time and temperature in the streets of Granada remained as a witness for about 16 hours. 

As a secondment researcher of the project sustainable from the German organisation Afridat UG, I have been working in the University of Granada for six months. The university labs, seminar and meeting rooms are fully equiped with the modern technologies of electric and electronic blessings. However, everything was blocked and cut out at a moment, when we tried to understand the situation and restore the set up of out local devices frequently perceiving it as local problem. After restarting the devices, opening and closing the manual switches and points, we understood that we do not have anything else to do now. 

Even we do not get any warning or message from the authority or from the government services, as all SIM-cards, Internet network and electric communications were just out. It seems to us as a rehearsal of the doomsday. Half an hour later security persons from the main entrance started to reach all students, teachers and officials in each floor with the request of leaving the building without any delay. All departments and schools got closed for the unknown time. No one could say, when we can come back to the work place or laboratories. 

I wanted to check the bus or tram schedule, but the phone has no connection. I became much worried for my family members and especially for my mother, as she cannot reach me over telephone and internet for unknown period. I found a colleague nearby, whose only one SIM was working till then. I called my mother directly and informed, "Mummy, I am well. We do not have internet and electricity. So do not try to reach me. Bye. 

All trams and trains are out of service, so the tracks are quite free to walk. During the crossing the university park, I saw hundreds of students are lying under the trees and playing or reading some books or papers, as they cannot even pass time by chatting or watching videos. So they are either sleeping or reading in the parks. 

In the Constitution Avenue I marked a number of vehicles of national and local police just at the crossing. At the zebra-crossing I found no traffic signal and all vehicles are stopping and giving us priority as passers by. Just crossing the road my sight gued at the street monitor, which shows the time and temperature. In both sides of the monitor, it shows only 12:33, although it has been now 17:25. 

The next attractive point was the announcement of the stationary shop in the Madrid Avenue, "Each icecream costs only one Euro." It was quite interesting for the children and the ice-cream lovers. Even there are some icecreams, which cost more than 4 Euros. However, as nobody knows, when the electricity will be restored, the shop owner tries to make the refrigerators empty as soon as possible. 

I was quite unsure what happens now and what is going to happen next hours and days. So hundreds of questions are coming and disturbing my thought. Are the planes flying now, landing or taking off in the right way? Oh I would be in the airport today, what could happen even with me? If I were in the train, where could I stay today? shall we get water in our taps today or tomorrow? There are many animals and plants in our laboratories. So if we cannot enter the labs for several days, how will they survive or will our testing animals will die, as most of our entrances are managed with electric chip and magnetic locks? 

I saw a super market in the right side of the street. So because of such an anxiety, I wanted to buy a bread. I went to the entrance of the market and someone told me in Spanish language, the shop has been closed because of power outage. About two hundred meter away, there was a butcher shop and fortunately it was open. So I bought one kilo chicken. After coming out it came to my mind that I am alone here and if my fridge does not work, what I can do with so much chicken. I got quite confused, should I give half kilo back or should I cook the whole of it today. 

Slowly, I arrived at the nearby park in Cartuja, where hundreds of neighbors are sitting in the park. They have brought their chairs and bedsheets outside and are passing time with whole family. Some young boys have taken their shirts out and enjyoing the abruptly won leisure time just gossiping. I was surprised to see that there was no sign of worries in their faces. But what will they do, if the power is not restored for a number of days? How will they get water? Where will they get money, if the electric machines do not work for a week? I got acute headache from thousands of questions about the coming uncertainty. 

I arrived home, while my home mates are just smoking and vapouring shishas without any anxiety. They could tell me, that the power outage is not only Spain, but also in France. I asked them, you are enjoying now, but how can we survive without electricity? They laughed without answer. I got fresh in the bathroom and thanked God that at least till now we have some water in the taps. Because of headache, I went to the bed without setting any alarm in the clock. At last at about 4 am on Tuesday, I marked it that the lights are on.

With a little hope, then I got up. Going to the kitchen, I saw the rest of the wax candle, which my homemate used during his cooking and having dinner. Later I came to know that also Portugal and France partially suffered from the same outage. On Tuesday, in the university one of my colleagues and professor in the university told me that he got some update yesterday only through the radio news. No other option was available till early morning on Tuesday.