A sudden power outage struck the Forum des Halles shopping center in central Paris on Friday afternoon, leaving stores in the dark and forcing a temporary halt to business operations. The blackout lasted approximately 30 minutes before electricity was restored around 2 p.m.
Shoppers and employees described a sudden loss of power that affected lighting, cash registers, and food preparation equipment. Several stores temporarily closed as a result, though the shopping center management confirmed the outage was only partial and lasted about 15 minutes. They have not yet provided an explanation for the incident.
Witnesses took to social media to share images of the darkened shopping complex, with one user reporting that the center had been evacuated. However, employees on site clarified that while customers left voluntarily when purchases became impossible, no formal evacuation order was given.
“The lights went out and everything just stopped—the ovens, the registers, everything,” said a bakery employee who was in the middle of preparing a sandwich. “Fortunately power returned within minutes.”
Public transportation in the area, including metro and RER services, continued operating normally throughout the incident according to the RATP, Paris’s public transport operator.
Many shopkeepers noted that such mid-day outages are rare. A bubble tea vendor remarked, “This is the first time I’ve seen something like this. Customers left but everything returned to normal very quickly.”
