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Thousands flocked to social media Friday, posting and sharing updates as the situation escalated. As of Saturday morning, more than 500,000 customers have had their power restored as the energy minister demands a full investigation.

An all-island power outage left Jamaica in the dark on Friday night (June 5), leaving millions in the dark and prompting social media updates as officials worked to determine what went wrong.

According to the Jamaica Observer, the Jamaica Public Service Company, the country’s national energy provider, began restoring power to Jamaicans across the island in phases that would continue into Saturday. According to JPS, more than 500,000 customers had had their power restored.

Energy Minister Daryl Vaz called the blackout “unacceptable” in a statement shared on X.

“I have been closely monitoring the situation all night and will continue to do so until full restoration is completed. I commit to keeping the nation advised and updated on this UNACCEPTABLE SITUATION,” he wrote.

Vaz called for an emergency meeting with JPS to learn how did the blackout occur, followed by a press briefing.

JPS says its systems were heavily affected by Hurricane Melissa last October, which caused significant damage to parts of the island.

Simultaneously, around 7:40 p.m. Friday, a fire broke out at the headquarters of the Jamaica Defense Force at Up Park Camp in St. Andrew. No injuries have been reported due to the blaze.

“The fire has since been successfully extinguished. At this time, the cause of the fire remains undetermined. A formal investigation will commence as soon as the affected area has been declared safe for entry by the relevant authorities,” a JDF official said in a statement. “The JDF thanks the responding fire units for their prompt action and will provide further updates as additional information becomes available.”