Azerbaijan Goes Dark After Power Station Explodes

The lights went out across Azerbaijan, as a network-wide power outage plunged cities, towns, and businesses into darkness. Drivers had to cope with failed traffic lights in the capital, Baku, a city of over two million people. Officials said the blackout in the early hours of July 3 was due to an explosion at a hydroelectric power station in the northern city of Mingacevir. Heavy use of air-conditioning during extremely high temperatures was blamed for the power surge which led to the explosion. Later in the morning, the government said electricity supplies to most districts of Baku had been restored.