El Niño caused droughts across much of the country, which lowered reservoir levels at many of its principal hydroelectric dams and a further crisis within the state public services company, Interconexión Eléctrica, S.A. (ISA).
El Niño occurs when warm waters originating off the coast of Australia reach South American shores.
The 1992 El Niño, which produced droughts in Colombia, coincided with infrastructure problems within the nation's hydroelectric power facilities.
Public awareness campaigns were launched under the name "Cierre la llave" ("Turn Off the Tap"), hoping to measure how much water was being wasted.
[2] One of two most popular telenovelas of 1992 in Colombia, En cuerpo ajeno, was moved from 8pm to 10pm on Cadena Uno, then a highly unusual timeslot for flagship novelas on Colombian television, so that more viewers could see it when they were not impacted by energy rationing (the blackouts in Bogotá ended at 9 pm).