Lightning blamed for citywide blackout
Lightning brought by thunderstorms was the alleged cause of the power shutdown in almost all areas of Iloilo City Tuesday evening.
The power blackout occurred at around 7:30 in the evening. Panay Electric Company (PECO), the sole power distributor in Iloilo City, said that after 25 minutes, the power connection was back.
“Wala sang permanent fault nga nakit-an ang crew namon sa pag trace nila sang linya namon despite sang indication nga ginpakita sa planta nga may fault ang line number 2,” said Engr. Randy Pastolero, special assistant to Peco president and chief executive officer Luis Miguel A. Cacho.
As such, they concluded that the blackout was due to a fault caused by series of lightning Tuesday evening.
“And then when we’re halfway after we have restored the power connection, there was another fault that occurred in the Panay Power Corporation towards the ILECO 1 area. Amo to liwat nga napatay ang power naton. That’s why it took us 30 minutes later to again restore power. That’s why we have a one-hour power outage,” Pastolero told ABS-CBN Iloilo.
During the second power outage, not all areas in Iloilo were power-less.
Pastolero explained that this is because they have powered-up several feeders in the area.
The second blackout occurred due to a fault of their line towards the Pavia area, in ILECO (Iloilo Electric Cooperative) 1 that caused their system to break down.
Amid the criticisms hurled on the company, Pastolero appealed for understanding.
“Well, definitely, at PECO, we are working to clear our lines, but there are troubles that are beyond our control. So, we ask for understanding from out consumers. Our stable power supply, the coal-fired power plant, is upcoming. This will make things better for us in Iloilo City,” he assured.
