Residents of Gombe State on Wednesday expressed their displeasure as they grappled with over 48 hours of power outage resulting from the vandalism of four 330kV towers by strong winds.
According to the PUNCH, the Transmission Company of Nigeria confirmed on Tuesday that four towers along the Jos-Gombe 330kV transmission line were vandalized at approximately 3:32 p.m. on April 22.
According to the General Manager of Public Affairs at TCN, Ndidi Mbah said, efforts to restore the transmission line were abortive when it tripped again after initial attempts.
Subsequent investigation, however, revealed that towers 288, 289, 290, and 291 had been vandalized, leading to their collapse and the theft of tower members.
In response to the disruption, TCN announced plans to back feed power to Gombe through its 132kV transmission line from Bauchi, as well as from Ashaka, Potiskum, Damaturu, and Billiri/Savannah. The company assured residents that every effort was being made to restore power supply to affected areas while simultaneously working on reconstructing the vandalized towers.
A resident of Gombe, Sharon Habu, lamented the inconvenience caused by the prolonged outage, stating, “Currently, we can’t find where to charge our electronic gadgets. We now have to patronize those charging for a living to keep life going. Life has become harder without the usual hours of power.”
In similar vein, another resident of the state, Haruna Saidu, shared similar sentiments, highlighting the increased financial strain resulting from the outage. “I now have to spend more money because I can’t afford to leave my family in the dark. I now have to buy fuel to ensure I use my generator more,” he remarked.
Mariam Simon, a trader, appealed to TCN to expedite repairs to alleviate the suffering of residents. “We are really suffering. We need the TCN to complete the repairs fast because we can’t continue to remain in the dark for two days or more,” she urged.
The Head of Communications at Jos Electricity Distribution Company, Dr. Elijah Adakole, has, however, urged customers to remain patient as TCN works to restore power in Gombe.
“Once they complete work, power will be transmitted. Our customers should exercise more patience,” he reassured.
