Power outages hit Cebu areas; power firm cites technical woes
CEBU CITY, Philippines–Several areas in the cities of Cebu and Mandaue on Monday experienced power outages after the Visayan Electric Company suffered technical problems starting Sunday night, an official of the power firm said.
According to Ethel T. Natera, VECO corporate communications manager, said a major transformer suffered severe damage Sunday night after it was hit by lightning.
Veco then transferred load from the south to feed power to its whole franchise area, Natera said in a text message.
However, at noon Monday, Veco’s diesel power plant in Barangay Ermita, Cebu City also experienced an overload, causing the power outage.
The affected substations are located in barangays Cabancalan and Banilad in Mandaue City and in barangays Calamba and Camputhaw, Cebu Business Park and Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino.
Power was expected to normalize starting around 4 p.m. Monday. Rains, however, are also delaying restoration efforts.
VECO is the second largest electric utility in the Philippines.
It serves the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and Naga and four municipalities of the greater part of Metro Cebu–Liloan, Consolacion, Minglanillla and San Fernando. Irene Sino-Cruz, Inquirer Visayas
