Dozens of people trapped in lifts in Cyprus due to power outage

In Cyprus, the Fire Service received dozens of calls after people became trapped in lifts due to a power outage. Most incidents were recorded in Nicosia and Limassol, although calls came from all districts of the Republic of Cyprus.

The outages began shortly before 11:00 and affected various areas of the island. After power was restored, many lifts resumed operating on their own, so firefighters' assistance was no longer required in those cases. According to preliminary information from the Electricity Authority of Cyprus, the cause was a failure in the electricity generation system overseen by the independent Cyprus Transmission System Operator.

According to sources, the problem was caused by a loss of communication between photovoltaic parks and the energy distribution centre. This led to a significant reduction in electricity generation and affected a large number of homes and businesses.

Power supplies began to be gradually restored using an alternative scheme, while specialists continued working to resolve the communication problem between the solar power plants and the distribution centre.