Bohol experiences power outage

BOHOL, Philippines  – The entire province of Bohol plunged into darkness shortly before Saturday midnight, September 9, following another unscheduled power outage.

At 11:54 pm Friday, September 8, power went out on all of Bohol’s 47 towns including the capital city of Tagbilaran, according to an advisory by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) sent to media through its regional communications officer, Betty Martinez.

The cause of the power outage was not indicated in the NGCP advisory, which was also sent to the 3 power distributors of Bohol: Bohol Electric Cooperatives 1 and 2, and Bohol Light Company,  Incorporated.

Two hours later, NGCP said on its Facebook page that the power interruption was due to the tripping of the Cebu-Compostela 138kV Lines 1 and 2.

The NGCP said the unscheduled power interruption affected parts of Cebu, Leyte, Samar, and Bohol.

“Initial information shows that lightning strikes may be involved,” NGCP said.

Power was fully restored by 4 am.

The NGCP said in an update that it is undertaking system and maintenance operations. It added that its personnel are still checking data to establish lightning strikes as the cause of the line trippings in Cebu.

The bulk of power needed for Bohol comes from Leyte supplied through an underwater cable.

Bohol had experienced weeks of power outage when Super Typhoon Yolanda hit Tacloban and Samar in 2013, and when a powerful quake struck Leyte on July 6, 2017.

Bohol Governor Edgar Chatto said on Friday that a privately-owned power barge  docked in Ubay town, northeast of Bohol, is expected to be operational this month and can provide power to at least a third of Bohol’s 1.3 million people. – Rappler.com