Major power outage hits Detroit

[WASHINGTON] A major power outage hit the US city of Detroit on Tuesday, cutting off electricity to all government buildings, including the city's jails and police stations, an energy company spokesman said.

"All government buildings have no power - police buildings, schools, jails," Scott Simons, a spokesman for DTE Energy, told AFP.

"It started 45 minutes ago. We don't know what caused the outage yet. We're working on it." The Detroit News said buildings in the downtown area were being evacuated.

The city, the most populous in the state of Michigan despite a shrinking population base, declared bankruptcy in July 2013 after years of financial woes.

A judge last month approved a plan that offers Detroit a roadmap for exiting bankruptcy.

AFP