The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

HUNDREDS of residents in western New Providence were left without reliable electricity for a second consecutive day yesterday as Bahamas Power and Light struggled with another round of outages during an already punishing summer.

Killarney MP Michela Barnett-Ellis said some communities lost power shortly after noon and did not regain service until between 9pm and 10pm, while Balmoral, Sanford Drive and Seaview were still without electricity as of 5pm.

“It is extremely frustrating,” Ms Barnett-Ellis said.

“It is hot. I feel sorry for the businesses because they have had now two full days when they have, if they did not have a generator, they have not been able to conduct business.”

BPL did not give a reason for yesterday's outages, saying only that crews were working to restore a damaged voltage line affecting Balmoral, Sanford Drive and surrounding areas. The utility initially gave a restoration window of noon.

Ms Barnett-Ellis said power briefly returned to some areas for about ten minutes before going off again. “I’ve been calling BPL to try and get you know some sort of an update,” she said, “all the while I can't charge my phone so these last two days. This week has been an interesting week.”

She called for compensation for affected customers.

BPL later reported that power had been restored after 6pm to Cable Beach, Skyline Lakes, Prospect Ridge and surrounding communities.

The latest disruption comes after months of repeated blackouts, load shedding and public complaints over the reliability of the electricity system.

This week alone, BPL reported repeated outages affecting Cable Beach, Coral Harbour and Old Fort Bay, along with portions of Stapleton Gardens, Millennium Gardens and Fort Charlotte because of tripped feeders and other operational faults.

The utility also reported service disruptions in Andros, Abaco and Bimini.The outages have left some residents sleeping in cars, discarding spoiled food and spending hundreds of dollars on generator fuel.

Ms Barnett-Ellis said the repeated failures were further evidence that BPL had not been prepared for summer demand and warned of the economic consequences for businesses.

BPL officials have blamed record electricity demand, extreme heat and ageing infrastructure for putting additional strain on the system.

Energy Minister JoBeth Coleby-Davis has  said officials are preparing a review of the utility’s performance for Cabinet and acknowledged that BPL, Bahamas Grid Company and the Davis administration had underestimated the impact of unusually high temperatures.

Officials, she said, “didn’t expect it to be as bad.”Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis also conceded in a national address earlier this month that he could not promise an immediate end to the outages.

He said failed generation and network equipment would be returned to service or replaced over the coming months.