A persistent power outage has continued to affect Masalani Town, the headquarters of Ijara Sub County in Kenya's Garissa County. The town has experienced frequent power outages, with the latest incident leaving residents without electricity for over 24 hours. The prolonged outage has caused significant disruptions to daily life, with the business community, particularly those stocking perishable goods, counting losses.
The power outage occurred after a brief drizzle, creating confusion among residents, especially candidates sitting for national exams who were expected to use the power to make last-minute revisions. Local leaders, including Abdullahi Abdi, chairman of the Masalani watchdog group, and Mohamed Gure, former Ijara county council chairman, expressed concerns that the trend could affect the performance of the candidates.
Despite the challenges, some grade 6 and 9 candidates resorted to using kerosene lamps and candles to revise after it became clear that the restoration of the power supply was not imminent. This highlights the resourcefulness of the students, but also underscores the need for a reliable electricity supply. The local leadership is now appealing to the Kenya Power Company (KPC) to establish a substation at Masalani town.
The proposed substation would reduce the town's reliance on the Hola substation in the neighboring Tana River County, providing a more reliable local electricity supply. Engineer In-Charge of Hola substation, Hezron Joseph, confirmed that a team had been dispatched to investigate two transformers suspected to have developed faults. The team is working to restore the power supply as soon as possible.
According to Hezron Joseph, the rains may have caused the disruption to the transformers at Arisheley, opposite KWS camp, and Masalani water supply station. However, poor road network has hindered a quick response to the crisis, exacerbating the situation. The restoration of the power supply is crucial for the residents, businesses, and students.
A spot-check by the Kenya News Agency revealed total paralysis in businesses such as garages, welding workshops, eateries, barber shops, and milk vendor outlets. The Masalani water supply station was also unable to supply water to the residents due to the raging power outage. This has added to the residents' frustration, who are now appealing to the Garissa County Governor, Nathif Jama, and Senator Abdul Mohamed Haji.
The residents are urging the county leaders to push for the establishment of a substation in the area to address the perennial power outage. The persistent power outages have had a significant impact on the daily lives of the residents, and a reliable electricity supply is essential for the town's economic and social development.
Key points
- The power outage has disrupted daily life in Masalani Town, causing losses for businesses and concerns for students taking national exams.
- Local leaders are appealing to the Kenya Power Company to establish a substation at Masalani town to provide a more reliable local electricity supply.
- The poor road network has hindered a quick response to the crisis, exacerbating the situation.
