A major network outage disrupted emergency services and telecommunications across Spain on Tuesday, weeks after a similar power blackout paralyzed the nation.
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| Emergency services across Spain were hit by a telecom outage Tuesday, linked to a network upgrade by Telefónica, prompting public concern over infrastructure stability. Image: CH |
MADRID, Spain — May 21, 2025:
A nationwide telecommunications outage struck Spain early Tuesday, disrupting phone and internet services and crippling emergency response capabilities across major cities. The incident, which lasted several hours, marks the second major infrastructure failure in a month, following an extensive power blackout that left millions stranded.
The outage, which began around 5 a.m., primarily affected landlines and internet services, making Spain’s national emergency number, 112, unreachable in multiple regions. Telefónica, the country’s leading telecommunications provider, attributed the disruption to a planned network upgrade.
“We have done some network upgrade work which has affected some companies’ fixed communication services,” Telefónica said in a statement. The company added that it had mobilized teams to restore services as quickly as possible.
Emergency services in Valencia, Aragón, the Basque Country, Catalonia, Extremadura, and Andalusia scrambled to maintain communication, sharing alternative mobile contact numbers via social media. Spanish broadcaster RTVC and several regional governments issued backup contact numbers for local police and medical services.
Downdetector, a platform that tracks connectivity issues, reported service disruptions across major providers including Movistar, O2, Orange, Vodafone, and Digimobil. Users in cities like Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Valencia, and Bilbao reported total signal loss, blackouts, and internet failures. While the Balearic Islands were mostly unaffected, the Canary Islands experienced minor connectivity issues.
By late morning, Telefónica and government officials confirmed that services had been largely restored. “We’ve been in contact with Telefónica from the first hour,” said Óscar López, Spain’s Minister for Digital Transformation. “All the incidents have now been resolved.”
Sergio Sánchez, Telefónica’s Operations Director, confirmed in a video statement that “all service has been reestablished except for a case or two where teams are still working.”
Telefónica serves over 41 million users and controls the majority of Spain’s fixed-line infrastructure. The scale and frequency of recent disruptions have raised questions about the resilience of the country’s digital infrastructure.
Just four weeks ago, a massive 18-hour blackout paralyzed Spain and neighboring Portugal, cutting off electricity to over 50 million people. That incident shut down transport networks, disabled traffic lights, and brought financial services to a halt, prompting widespread criticism of the government’s response.
Authorities are now under pressure to strengthen infrastructure safeguards and establish better contingency plans to ensure emergency service continuity in the event of future disruptions.