(ANSA-AFP) - PODGORICA, JUN 21 - Major blackouts hit large
swaths of the western Balkans on Friday as surging demand for
electricity linked to a spike in temperatures across the region
overwhelmed power networks. Temperatures in Montenegro's capital
Podgorica touched 38 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit) on
Friday afternoon, as the country's main power provider said
electricity was out across most of the Adriatic nation.
Montenegro's Minister of Energy and Mining Sasa Mujovic told
local media that the power outage issue was regional in nature
and linked to the ongoing heat wave. "There has been a sudden
increase in consumption due to high temperatures," said Mujovic.
In nearby Croatia, large stretches of the country's coastline in
the southern Dalmatia region were also without power, according
to reports in local media. "The cut in electricity supply in
parts of Croatia was caused by an international disturbance that
affected several countries," Croatia's national electricity
company (HEP) said in a statement published by the state-run HRT
broadcaster. (ANSA-AFP).
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