Power went off in Caracas after 07:00 p.m. (23:00 GMT) on Friday. Local netizens took on social media to show that there were outages in the majority of the city's districts.
Blackout Caracas pic.twitter.com/oEpzgqK61q
— Tom Phillips (@tomphillipsin) 30 марта 2019 г.
Moreover, there is reportedly limited cell phone coverage and internet access in the affected areas.
The new Friday night in #Venezuela: Caracas at 7:11pm and then 7:12pm. pic.twitter.com/c6zE8xaaDE
— Andy Rosati (@andrewrosati) 29 марта 2019 г.
Earlier this week, Venezuelan Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez said that Venezuela's power grid had faced attacks four times in the course of one month, which resulted in the second nation-wide blackout to hit the country within a month late in March.
Apagón vuelve a dejar a oscuras a #Caracas y varias regiones de #Venezuela | Enfoque Noticias https://t.co/cjEmR4QKuQ pic.twitter.com/yPzb7BrcTI
— Enfoque Noticias (@EnfoqueNoticias) 30 марта 2019 г.
Amid the blackout, Venezuelan authorities announced public holidays that lasted from Tuesday to Thursday. On Thursday, Rodriguez said that the electricity supply system had been, however, restored in the majority of Venezuela's regions.
READ MORE: Attack on Venezuela's Guri Dam Carried Out With Use of Sniper Rifle — Maduro
The national electricity supplier Corpoelec has insisted that the first power cut was the result of sabotage at the major Guri hydroelectric power plant in eastern Bolivar state.
The authorities of Venezuela’s second populous state of Miranda, located in the north of the country next to the capital of Caracas, have boosted police patrols in the region due to the large blackout in the country, regional governor Hector Rodriguez said.
"I have instructed the police of the Miranda state to strengthen city patrols […] We receive messages about power failures across the state", Rodriguez wrote on Twitter on Friday.
READ MORE: Cabinet Minister Says Venezuela's Blackout May Be Caused by US Cyberattack
The governor added that a lot of the authorities’ activities were devoted to ensuring there were autonomous generators of electric power at hospitals.
Venezuela has been plunged into severe unrest since January this year after US-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido proclaimed himself "interim president". Guaido’s bid is recognized by the majority of Latin American countries as well as many EU states.
In the meantime, Russia, China, Turkey, Cuba, Iran and a number of other states stand by constitutionally elected President Nicolas Maduro and warn Washington and its allies against "meddling" in the country’s affairs.
READ MORE: Russian Lawmaker Calls Out US' Colonial Approach to Russia-Venezuela Relations
