TIME
A massive blackout that plunged huge swaths of Brazil into darkness — as well as the whole of Paraguay — underscores the challenges facing South America’s biggest nation as it prepares to modernize its infrastructure in time for the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympic Games in Rio two years after.
Tuesday night’s blackout brought chaos to some of the region’s biggest cities and frightened many of its residents. It started at around 10 p.m., when lights flickered for a few moments and then died. It lasted more than two hours. Power returned to São Paulo, a metropolis of more than 20 million people, around midnight, before going off again a few moments later. Lights came back on shortly before 1:30 a.m.
The power outage affected 18 of Brazil’s 27 states and caused havoc, with metros in at least two cities grinding to a halt and blank traffic lights causing road chaos. People got stuck in elevators. Universities sent students home. Bars and restaurants couldn’t serve food and drink. The water supply was affected in some areas, and cell-phone calls weren’t going through. Furthermore, Brazil is a nation where high crime rates have bred fear and suspicion, and so huge numbers of people stayed home, keeping their distance from the sinister, unlit streets.
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