Damaged electric posts cause massive blackouts in Negros Oriental
DUMAGUETE CITY—Parts of Negros Oriental province have been experiencing power interruption since Monday after 20 primary electric posts were toppled by strong winds and rains brought by Severe Tropical Storm “Maring” (international name: Kompasu).
Dann Aba of the Negros Oriental II Electric Cooperative (Noreco II) said their linemen had been working double time to fix the downed electric posts and restore power connection in affected areas, particularly in the city of Tanjay and the towns of Pamplona, Siaton and Zamboanguita.
On Saturday, power was also cut off from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. in previously unaffected areas in the towns of Pamplona, Sibulan, Valencia and Sta. Catalina to give way to massive vegetation clearing operations, Noreco II announced on its website.
Complaints
Aba appealed to the public to be patient since there was difficulty in replacing the damaged electric posts, as some parts of the province have soft soil, especially those near rice mills.
Aba said Noreco II personnel also had difficulty reaching the affected areas since they could not pass through bridges that were flooded.
“We are receiving a lot of complaints from consumers whose online classes and work were affected by the power interruption for six days now,” Aba admitted in an interview on Saturday.
One of those students was Aga Calatcat, 22, a resident of the village of Luca in Tanjay City, who lamented that the brownout had affected her studies.
Calatcat, a Bachelor of Science in Education senior student of Villaflores College, said she had to go to the other villages in her city that were not affected by the blackout just to attend her online classes.
“I don’t have any other choice but to go to another place,” she said in an interview.
Some affected residents could not also do their online jobs.
“We really depend on online work. Since we are working from home, not having power means ‘no work, no pay’ for us. It’s hard but we can’t do anything about it,” said a woman from Tanjay City who requested not to be identified.