Power was restored to most of Chile's 19 million people Wednesday after the country's most disruptive blackout in 15 years, the government said, as authorities lifted a strict curfew imposed when the outage left 98% of the population without electricity.

Internet and mobile phone services blinkered offline. People complained of water shortages as pumps stopped working. Emergency generators helped hospitals and government offices continue operating.

SANTIAGO — Chilean authorities said they restored power to most homes on Wednesday, hours after a massive, rare blackout caused transport chaos in the capital and forced the nation's president to declare a state of emergency and a curfew across much of the country.