Power was slowly restored this afternoon in parts of Mérida after a cut to a transmission line between Tabasco and Campeche caused a massive blackout across those states, as well as Chiapas, Yucatán and Quintana Roo. Playa del Carmen, Cancun and Tulum were among the larger cities affected.
The outage began at 11 a.m., and it was about an hour before electricity began to return to houses, gas stations, traffic lights and hospitals across the Peninsula. Police directed traffic at busy intersections until electric signals were back in service.
A complete restoration of service was promised by mid-afternoon.
Officials denied a rumor spreading on social media that the power failure was the result of an explosion in Oaxaca. The claim was accompanied by a video that was taken four years ago, said a manager from CFE, the electric company.
An estimated 1.7 million customers were affected by the power failure, CFE reports.