On May 20, 2025, Spain experienced a nationwide telecommunications failure early in the morning, leading to significant disruptions in emergency phone services. This incident affected multiple regions, including Valencia, Aragón, and the Basque Country for several hours, leaving many unable to contact emergency services via the national number 112. Telefónica, Spain’s largest telecom provider, attributed the outage to a planned network upgrade, impacting landlines and internet services the most.
Network Glitch Disrupts Emergency Services Across Spain Again
Network Glitch Disrupts Emergency Services Across Spain Again
A recent network outage in Spain has reignited concerns about the country's infrastructure resilience, following a major blackout that occurred just weeks prior.
Emergency responders had to rely on social media to share alternative contact numbers while authorities in Catalonia and Extremadura confirmed that their emergency lines were disrupted but expressed that contingency plans were in place. By late morning, Telefónica declared that all systems were restored, with the country's digital transformation minister praising the company's quick response.
Telefónica serves over 41 million customers and largely maintains a monopoly over Spain's landline services. Outage tracking service Downdetector noted spikes in issues for other telecom providers as well, such as Movistar, O2, and Orange.
This incident follows a major incident last month where an 18-hour blackout affected millions, paralyzing transport and businesses. The previous outage has already drawn public criticism directed at government officials concerning their management of such infrastructure crises, which have reportedly cost the economy millions of euros.
Telefónica serves over 41 million customers and largely maintains a monopoly over Spain's landline services. Outage tracking service Downdetector noted spikes in issues for other telecom providers as well, such as Movistar, O2, and Orange.
This incident follows a major incident last month where an 18-hour blackout affected millions, paralyzing transport and businesses. The previous outage has already drawn public criticism directed at government officials concerning their management of such infrastructure crises, which have reportedly cost the economy millions of euros.
