George Henry, Gleaner WriterSPALDINGS, Clarendon:
Jamaica Public Service customers in sections of north west Clarendon and north east Manchester are calling on the light and power company to explain a series of unscheduled power outages affecting them. The customers are fearful they could lose several pieces of equipment and appliances to the unscheduled power cuts.
According to a number of the JPS customers from communities such as Spaldings, Baillieston, Santa Hill and Alston, over the past four to five weeks they have been encountering numerous disruptions in their electricity supplies.
They told The Gleaner that as a result of the unscheduled power outages home equipment and appliances are being affected and they are fearful that if the power cuts continue they could lose several pieces of their assets.
DISRUPTIONS
Wayne Brown, a JPS customer of Baillieston told The Gleaner that the disruptions in electricity supply sometimes last as long as ten hours. "Last week Thursday night at about 11 p.m. I was watching a movie on my DVD player and before half an hour into the show the current (electricity) went. I thought it was coming back soon, so I waited up until about midnight, believing that it would return but it did not. So I went to my bed. When I woke up the next morning and switched on the light, there was still no current," said Mr. Brown.
He said the electricity eventually returned after 9 a.m. causing him and a number of persons in his area to reach work late, as there was no electricity to do their domestic chores.
Other JPS customers in Christiana shared similar experiences, saying that the power outages have been affecting them. One customer, Hazel Facey of Struan Castle said the electricity went some time after midnight on Saturday and did not return until after 10 a.m. yesterday (Sunday). As a result, she said there was no water in her tap, which is supplied by the National Water Commission's pumping station in the area.
REASONS
When The Gleaner checked with the Jamaica Public Service Company office in Mandeville to get word as to the reasons surrounding the frequent power outages in the various areas, a source at the Operations Office said they were being caused by tripped breakers.
When asked why the breakers were tripping so frequently, the source pointed out that it was not clear at the time, but checks were being made by the company's workmen to see what the possible reasons are.
