Spain's blackout in numbers
Some surprising figures from Monday's power cut
Welcome, Bienvenidos and Benvinguts to all new and regular subscribers of The 'B' Word.
What a week for Barcelona and the rest of Spain, after the historic blackout. We’ve all probably experienced power cuts before, but very few of us at a nationwide level.
I know that many of you had a horrible day stuck on transport or unable to get home. I feel very fortunate that our electricity was only cut for four hours (although our internet for much longer). This did allow me to report on the incident for The Local Spain, however, and I would like to take this opportunity to share with you just some of the facts I found out while researching. Usual Barcelona content will resume next issue.
60 million - The number of people left without power across Spain, Portugal and parts of France.
15 gigawatts - The amount of power that suddenly left the system in just five seconds.
48,638 - The number of Renfe passengers affected by the power outage, 26,161 of whom were able to catch alternative trains to reach their destination.
35,000 - The number of people stuck on trains or in metro carriages.
750 - The number of people stuck in lifts in Catalonia alone.
45 - The number of cancelled flights in Spain on the day of the blackout.
30,000 - The number of extra National Police officers and Civil Guard officers deployed across the country to ensure public order and traffic flow.
7 - The number of people who (we know so far) died as a result of the blackout - 3 people from inhaling carbon monoxide from their generator, one because her oxygen machine stopped, 2 others in fires due to burning candles, and one who needed electricity-powered life support equipment.
€800 million - The estimated amount of money the blackout has cost Spain’s economy, according to the Ministry of Economy.
La Gracienca
Last week was my first visit to this cute little tapas bar in the heart of the Gràcia neighbourhood. With only around six tables, plus the bar, La Gracienca offers a very cosy vibe, with homemade tapas dishes served from their tiny kitchen. They dish up classics with a twist such as patatas bravas with boiled potatoes and topped with smoky paprika sauce, as well as tortilla with artichokes. We also had a delicious baba ganoush aubergine dip studded with pink pomegranate seeds. All vegetarian dishes are clearly marked and they can even make vegetarian alternatives of traditional plates likes ensaladilla rusa (potato salad usually with tuna) and sobresada (cured sausage which can be spread like a paste).
Tres Tombs (May 3)
I wrote about the 200th anniversary of the Tres Tombs festival in one of my newsletters at the beginning of this year. This Saturday is the grand event where people from 95 towns and villages all over Catalonia will gather in honour of the event for Sant Antoni. The parade starts at 10:30am on Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina and will feature 70 carriages and over 200 horses. You can find out more about it here.
Fira Internacional del Disco (May 2-4)
On at Estación del Norte, this international record fair has been held since the early 1980s in different cities throughout Spain. It’s a must for lovers of all things vintage and music-related from vinyl records and CDs to posters, T-shirts, cassettes, books and badges.
Palo Alto Market Fest (May 3 & 4)
Hip Palo Alto market is back this weekend, Poblenou’s beloved design street market, held in an old abandoned factory. There’s everything from jewellery made from organic and recycled materials to live music and DJ sessions, and of course street food stalls like gyozas and wood-fired pizzas.
Apagada - Blackout or power cut
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