On July 4, at around midday local time, a major power outage occurred in the Czech Republic, affecting the capital and northern regions of the country. According to Prague Energy, the outage was caused by an accident at an electrical substation in the town of Chodov. The Czech electricity operator ČEPS confirmed the loss of voltage in several parts of the power grid. Most of Prague, as well as the cities of Hradec Králové, Liberec, Mladá Boleslav and Ústí nad Labem, were left without power.
The power outage disrupted public transport and utilities. The metro and most bus and tram routes were suspended in the capital, and rail service between cities was also disrupted. Many retail outlets and ATMs stopped working. According to Novinky.cz, hundreds of people were trapped in elevators. However, Prague Airport continues to operate as usual.
Similar large-scale power outages have occurred in Europe before - on April 28, 2025, a major outage affected Spain and Portugal, where traffic lights did not work, there were problems with communications, and the metro and airports stopped. Power supply in these countries was restored by April 29.
