A massive power outage hit the region around Cannes in southeastern France on Saturday, briefly disrupting the film festival there and leaving thousands without electricity, according to French authorities.
RTE, France’s electrical grid operator, said in a statement posted on social media that the outage started at 10 a.m. and had cut power to 160,000 homes in Cannes and the surrounding area. Crews from RTE and from France’s electrical distribution company were “working to restore power as quickly as possible,” it said.
The cause of the outage was not immediately clear.
Organizers of the film festival said in a statement that it had quickly switched over to an independent power supply, “allowing all scheduled events and screenings, including the closing ceremony, to proceed as planned and under normal conditions.” It said screenings at one theater had been “temporarily suspended.”
The Palme d’Or, the festival’s top prize, and other awards are scheduled to be awarded on Saturday evening.
Local news media reported that traffic lights were not functioning in certain neighborhoods of Cannes, and state authorities in the Alpes-Maritimes area, which includes the city, urged people to use caution on any trips.
Aurelien Breeden is a reporter for The Times in Paris, covering news from France.
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