Lightning knocks out power at Evzoni, chaos in the dark

For thousands of travelers, the summer drive to Greece turned tonight into a scene no one expected. Shortly before 9 p.m. a lightning strike hit the electrical supply system at the Evzoni border crossing, on the Greek side toward Bogorodica and North Macedonia. The result was immediate and dramatic, a total collapse and a complete blackout across the entire crossing.

When the lightning struck, the lines of vehicles were already long. The start of the summer season, the rush of tourists and biometric checks had created congestion even without any fault, and then the power outage turned everything into chaos. Travelers were trapped in their cars and buses, in the dark, with no clear information about what awaited them or how long the wait would last.

Why did the generators not save the day?

Border crossings normally have backup power, but tonight it showed its limits. The generators simply were not enough to power all the devices needed for the crossing to function normally. Even where there was electricity, there was no internet, so the biometric systems and passenger checks could not run at full capacity.

That created a double problem. On one hand, a physical darkness in which travelers struggle to manage, searching for family, children and documents. On the other, a digital darkness, because without a network the Greek officers cannot process travelers at the speed they normally would. In those conditions every line grows faster than it clears.

Many travelers describe the same feeling, worry because they do not know what lies ahead. Whether the crossing would resume in an hour, in two, or only once the network fault is fully fixed, no one could say with certainty. And these are families who set out on holiday, often with small children, after several hours of driving from Serbia to the Greek border.

It is especially awkward that all of this happened at the very start of the season. A large number of buses reach Evzoni early in the morning, so the power-related standstill is compounded by the regular morning surge. Add to that the biometric EES checks, the new Schengen entry system, which slows the flow even in ideal conditions and, during a blackout, practically blocks everything.

What should travelers heading to Greece tonight do?

If you are already on your way to Evzoni or only planning to set off, the first recommendation is to check the situation at the crossing before you join a line that is hard to leave. When the main crossing is blocked, it makes sense to consider alternative routes.

The recommended alternatives are the Dojran crossing, then Medzitlije-Niki and Prohor Pcinjski, where delays are usually shorter. These crossings are not always the fastest in terms of distance, but when the main corridor is in the dark, a shorter wait often means more than a few dozen extra kilometers of road.

It also helps to bring enough water, to charge your phones while you still have power in the car, and not to count on having internet at the crossing. If you are traveling with children, plan breaks and food in advance, because in a line with no light and no network there is no room for quick improvisation.

Greek authorities are expected to fix the power fault as soon as weather conditions allow, but the exact time of normalization was not known tonight. Until then, patience and good preparation remain the only things travelers can truly control.

Did you get stuck at one of the border crossings to Greece this season, and how did you cope in the line?