Massive Blackout in La Plata: Fire at Tolosa Substation Leaves Much of the City Without Power

What Happened

According to official sources, a transformer inside the substation exploded, igniting a fire that spread quickly and damaged electrical infrastructure. Firefighters worked for hours, and as a precaution, residents of nearby buildings were evacuated. No injuries were reported, but the smell of burning lingered for blocks.

Affected Areas

The blackout extended from the hypermarkets along Centenario and Belgrano highways to 7th and 38th streets, as reported by local newspaper El Día. Outages were also recorded in La Loma, Gonnet, and the final stretch of the Buenos Aires-La Plata Highway, which lost its lighting. Utility company Edelap confirmed in its first statement that service was disrupted in sectors of the city center and the neighborhoods of Tolosa, Ringuelet, Villa Castells, San Carlos, José Hernández, and Gonnet.

Complaints and Protests

Since the early hours, hundreds of users tried to reach Edelap via WhatsApp and phone lines, but the claims system collapsed. Residents from various areas said the company replied with an automated message: “We're sorry, there was a problem and we couldn't recover supply information.” Others noted that the virtual office was under maintenance.

“We've been without power since 2:30 AM in La Loma, near 40th and 30th. We can't file a claim; WhatsApp isn't working.”

In Tolosa, two neighbors reported that Edelap rejected their NIS numbers and gave no details on when service would return. “We have food in the fridge; everything's going to spoil,” one lamented.

Edelap's Response

Around 8:40 AM, Edelap issued an official statement confirming the fire and the preventive evacuation. The company said the blaze was extinguished thanks to the joint efforts of firefighters, civil defense, and company technicians. It also assured that work is underway to reconfigure the network to restore power, prioritizing essential services such as health facilities, and that a gradual restoration plan with generators has been deployed.

“The company apologizes to affected residents and will keep users informed through its official channels,” the statement concluded.

Context and Background

Edelap is the electricity distributor for the region, serving more than 400,000 users across a concession area of 5,700 km². Interestingly, just this week it had announced maintenance work at the Tolosa station “to optimize service quality for over 45,000 users.” The outage also occurred on a public holiday (the anniversary of General San Martín's death), complicating in-person customer service.

Complaints about frequent outages and poor response from the company have been a recurring issue in the region. In recent weeks, residents of various towns reported repeated interruptions. This massive blackout, which lasted more than six hours, has reignited frustration toward the utility.