On 26 February 2020, at around 9.30 am, a major power blackout affected the Arve Valley.
Around 34,000 homes, as well as ski-lifts, the rail network and road tunnels were affected in Megève, Chamonix, Saint-Gervais and Les Houches.
On 26 February 2020, the Mont-Blanc valley suffered a major power outage.
"A technical incident occurred in the Passy substation at 9:30 am. It caused a power cut in the Arve valley, impacting, among other things, the ski resorts of Megève, Chamonix, Saint-Gervais and Les Houches", declared the RTE (Electricity Transmission Network) via a press release.
At the Grands Montets in Chamonix, the ski lifts were at a standstill, with skiers on board. The Compagnie du Mont-Blanc, which operates the ski lifts, has repatriated them.
The current gradually returned at the end of the morning and in Saint-Gervais, the Mont-Blanc Tramway was able to run again while in Megève and Les Houches, the lifts also resumed service.
The cut also impacted road traffic on the RN205, between Servoz and Chamonix, as the two tunnels were no longer supplied with electricity.
Light vehicles were diverted to departmental 13 and heavy goods vehicles stored on the Fayet control area. Everything returned to normal at 10:40 am.
Regarding rail traffic, several trains on the Mont-Blanc Express line were affected by the breakdown.
RTE and Enedis teams were mobilized to restore the situation in the area concerned. At 11 am, the last homes without electricity were refuelled.
