Zamboanga City villages brace for 8-hour blackout

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Sept. 17, 2010) – The local electric cooperative on Friday announced an eight-hour blackout in several areas to allow maintenance work on a 69 kilovolt line in Zamboanga City in Mindanao.

Reinerio Ramos, general manager of the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative, said the power interruption would start at 8 a.m. on Sunday and would end at 5 p.m. in areas which draw electricity from the San Roque powerhouse.

He said the repair is necessary and maintenance workers would replace an old wooden pole of Structure No. 6. “The shut-off schedule will also give ample time for the replacement of broken insulators on Structures Nos. 13 and 16 and the armoring of conductor between Structures No. 1 and 2,” Ramos said.

He said the work is part of regular transmission line maintenance for this year which is being undertaken by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.

“Please bear with us during this power interruption. This work is being done to upgrade the NGCP power system for safe energy delivery to our cooperative,” he said. (With a report from Jung Francisco)

Zambo, ibang bahagi ng Mindanao, balot na naman ng blackout!

Mindanao Examiner Photo

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Sept. 12, 2010) – Muli na naman binuysit ng sunod-sunod na blackout ang Zamboanga City sa mga nakalipas na araw at batikos ang tinatanggap ng lokal na kooperatiba mula sa publiko.

Ilan sa mga himpilan ng radio naman ay nagsabing nasira ang kanilang mga computers dahil sa blackout. Maging ang boltahe ng kuryente ay madalas bumaba sa 220 volts kung kaya’t lalong nadagdagan ang hinaing ng publiko dahil sa naapektuhang mga appliances.

Isang tanggapan naman ang nagsabi sa Abante na nasira ang baterya ng kanilang UPS o universal power supply dahil sa eratik na blackout at mababang kuryente mula sa Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative.

Sa ibang bahagi ng Mindanao ay 9 na oras naman ng blackout ang inanunsyo ng National Grid Corporation of the Philippines upang maayos diumano ang daloy ng kuryente sa kahabaan ng Maramag-Kibawa 138-kilovolt transmission sa lalawigan ng Bukidnon.

Saklaw nito ang buong lalawigan ng Cotabato, Davao, Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat at katabing mga lugar.

Nitong taon lamang ay napeste ng ilang buwan ang malaking bahagi ng Mindanao, kasama ang Zamboanga City sa 9 na oras na rotational blackout dahil sa kakulangan ng kuryente sa rehiyon. (Mindanao Examiner)

Blackout in Kidapawan City

A boy buys from a pharmacy while two children study in the dark in Kidapawan City as blackout continue in many parts of Mindanao due to low water level in hydroelectric power plants which provide electricity to millions of households in the southern region. (Mindanao Examiner Photo - Geo Solmerano)