Power outage halts streetcars, hits thousands in The Hague

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Streetcars ground to a halt and some stores closed in the Hague after a power outage hit large parts of the Dutch city Monday, with technicians still trying to fix the fault several hours later.

Power grid company Stedin said the outage that started around 11 a.m. (0900 GMT) affected 37,000 customers in the west of the city. The affected area stretched from downtown to busy North Sea beach neighbourhoods.

Stedin said a problem at a power generator’s main distribution station caused the loss of power.

At the end of the afternoon, the company said repair work was continuing. “We’re doing everything we can to restore power to everyone safely and as quickly as possible,” the company said on its website.