Denver Airport. Photo: Jim Lambert / Shutterstock
Over 40,000 people were left without power Sunday evening (February 1, 2026), with disruptions spreading across parts of Colorado, including some emergency 911 services and operations at Denver International Airport.
The outages were triggered by what CORE Electric Cooperative described as a “major disturbance” on the transmission system linking its network with Xcel Energy. The two companies are now working together to figure out exactly what went wrong.
The largest impacts were in Arapahoe County, where 23,416 customers lost power, followed by Douglas County with 20,242 affected and Elbert County with 691. By around 5:15 p.m., CORE reported that the vast majority of customers had their electricity restored, leaving only three still in the dark.
Power outage. Photo: PV ProductionsDenver International Airport took the hit as well, with trains that move passengers around the terminal losing power, prompting evacuations. The airport advised travelers on X to follow the instructions of airport staff while operations were disrupted.
“DEN experienced a power incident this afternoon. Trains were impacted and are currently being restored. We are working to get other systems back online. Passengers should follow directions of airport employees,” the airport said in a post.
By 4:45 p.m., DIA confirmed that all passengers had been safely evacuated and that power had been restored to the train system. The most recent update now indicates that all airport operations have officially resumed.
“We want to thank our passengers for their patience,” the airport added.