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| Power cuts strike Western Europe | |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Power cuts have struck several countries in Western Europe, leaving millions of people without electricity. | |
| Power companies said the outage started in Germany with a surge in demand prompted by cold weather, and then spread to other parts of Europe. | Power companies said the outage started in Germany with a surge in demand prompted by cold weather, and then spread to other parts of Europe. |
| Some five million people in France lost power, mainly in the east of the country and including parts of Paris. | Some five million people in France lost power, mainly in the east of the country and including parts of Paris. |
| "We weren't very far from a European blackout," a senior director with French power company RTE said. | "We weren't very far from a European blackout," a senior director with French power company RTE said. |
| Pierre Bornard told the French news agency AFP that two German high-voltage transmission lines failed, causing problems across western Europe. | Pierre Bornard told the French news agency AFP that two German high-voltage transmission lines failed, causing problems across western Europe. |
| This triggered a "house of cards" style system breakdown, he said. | This triggered a "house of cards" style system breakdown, he said. |
| Automatic security systems cut supplies to some customers to avoid a complete blackout. | Automatic security systems cut supplies to some customers to avoid a complete blackout. |
| Italy, Belgium and Spain were also affected by the power cuts. | Italy, Belgium and Spain were also affected by the power cuts. |
| Most electricity supplies were restored within two hours of the outage, and so far no injuries or accidents have been reported. | Most electricity supplies were restored within two hours of the outage, and so far no injuries or accidents have been reported. |
| Fire brigades in France said they had to answer several calls from people stuck in lifts. | Fire brigades in France said they had to answer several calls from people stuck in lifts. |
| High speed rail links were also disrupted. | High speed rail links were also disrupted. |