Over 22,000 households, businesses, and hospitals in Zamboanga City have been without electricity for nearly 40 hours as of 7 p.m. Monday. The Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative (Zamcelco) initially scheduled the power interruption on March 21 to repair an oil leak in one of its transformers but postponed it to March 22 due to Eid’l Fitr celebrations. Consumers from Northside, Tetuan, ZAMPEN, and Mercedes feeders were informed of the planned outage from 4 a.m. to 12 noon on March 22, but repairs extended beyond 38 hours. Zamcelco General Manager Gannymede Tiu explained that Crizlink Corporation, the third-party contractor repairing the transformer, encountered air ingress during the process, causing gas accumulation in the relay chamber. Efforts to filter the gas and reenergize the feeders have failed so far. Zamcelco activated two 4-megawatt generator sets, providing limited electricity but tripping due to high demand, leading to overloading. The cooperative has urgently requested the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines to approve the operation of a new 20-MVA substation in Barangay Culianan to supply power to the Mercedes feeder. Residents and businesses have faced significant inconvenience, with losses reported due to melted ice cream and spoiled perishables. Hospitals like Zamboanga Peninsula Medical Center and Zamboanga Regional Medical Center have relied on generator sets, with one hospital warning of diesel shortages. Engineers from Davao del Sur Electric Cooperative are expected to assist in expediting repairs. Zamcelco is considering rotational blackouts in the affected areas until the issue is resolved. (Queenie Casimiro/MindaNews)
