Dominican Republic Experiences Nationwide Power Outage
The Dominican Republic is grappling with a nationwide power outage that began today, November 12, 2025, at 1:23 PM local time, disrupting services across the Caribbean nation.
The state-owned Dominican Electricity Transmission Company (DETC) reported the issue originated at a substation, causing a complete interruption to power services. Energy Minister Joel Santos Echeverría confirmed the failure, and as of this evening, approximately 33% of national power demand has been restored. The outage comes as the country has experienced intermittent, smaller blackouts in recent weeks, raising concerns about the stability of the national grid.
Officials at the DETC stated that generation units at two major power plants went offline, triggering “a cascade of failures” throughout the system. Reports from local media indicate the metro and cable car systems in Santo Domingo were forced to halt operations, requiring passenger evacuations, and traffic congestion has been reported on roadways. While widespread, the outage has not been uniform, with some areas maintaining electricity and internet access. The Dominican Republic is a popular destination for tourism, and disruptions to essential services can significantly impact the visitor experience; learn more about travel to the Dominican Republic.
The incident follows recent severe weather in the region, including Hurricane Melissa last month, which caused fatalities in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Authorities are working to fully restore power as quickly as possible, and further updates will be provided as they become available. You can find more information about energy security and resilience on the U.S. Department of Energy website.
