France, May 24 -- A major power outage has swept through French Riviera, but thanks to backup systems, the 78th Cannes Film Festival's glamorous closing ceremony will go ahead as planned.

A widespread power outage plunged much of Cannes and the surrounding area into darkness on Saturday, cutting electricity to 160,000 homes.

But despite the disruption, the much-anticipated closing ceremony of the 78th Cannes Film Festival will go ahead as planned, organisers have confirmed.

The blackout, which struck the western Alpes-Maritimes region, was first reported on social media by local authorities and electricity grid operator RTE.The cause appears to be a two-pronged blow to the power network: a suspected arson attack at a high-voltage subst...