A blackout originally referred to the moment stage lights go out in theater, but it now commonly describes a large-scale, prolonged power outage. Unlike brief local outages, blackouts can span multiple regions or even continents, disrupting essential services. They can be triggered by natural disasters, technical failures, cyberattacks, or imbalances in energy supply and demand. The consequences are severe, affecting hospitals, communication, transportation, and access to basic necessities like water and food. Because of their impact, it's recommended to keep emergency supplies on hand, even though blackouts are rare in some regions like Europe.
*This video summary was created by AI from the original DW script. It was edited by a journalist before publication.