Residents of several parts of Georgetown yesterday experienced blackouts which lasted for 12 hours after being told by the power company they would last no longer than six hours.
In other parts of the city power went on and off continuously.
Janice Reynolds, a resident of South Ruimveldt said that about 10:45 am yesterday, her area suffered a power outage. Power was restored at about 8:00 pm.
Mark Cumberbatch, a resident from the Lacytown ward said that for the entire day he was unable to operate his shop because most of his products are beverages. He had to buy a large amount of ice.
69 year-old Gema Ramsawack said that the blackout yesterday forced her to move to her daughter’s residence in Pouderoyen, but this effort produced no results, because they too later experienced the same thing.
A source from the power company said that the lengthy interruptions were caused by a power plant in Sophia which houses a 69Kv substation that needed work on cables for feeders serving the lower East Coast, sections of Georgetown and East Bank.
The source added that technicians and workers on the ground faced a number of difficulties which led to an unstable flow of power to many residents of the coastal area.
In a press release dated March 14th , GPL explained that sections of Georgetown, lower East Coast and East Bank would have had their power interrupted for a 6 hour period yesterday, starting from 08:30hrs.
The release further added that the existing Sophia 69Kv substation had to be integrated with a new substation being constructed, requiring a safe working corridor to be established.
