“The problem has to do with multiple cable faults supplying electricity to the cbd,” explained Benjamin Nangombe, Public Relations & Marketing Officer at Erongo RED.
Nangombe said yesterday to namib times that solving problem is currently the highest priority, which is why Erongo RED has dispatched additional technicians from Walvis Bay on Wednesday to investigate the exact cause and find a solution. “Some of the faults have been identified and the technicians are working on them,” he said.
According to him the current issues have no connection with the planned power outage, which affected certain areas of Swakopmund on Sunday. The power outage was initiated to give NamPower the opportunity to perform tests on the Swakopmund Substation transformers. The first unplanned power outage hit the CBD and areas of Kramersdorf again on Independence Day. “That problem was quickly identified and repaired,” Nangombe said.
Erongo RED experienced the multiple cable failures on Wednesday morning. The power supply to various areas of Swakopmund, including some northern suburbs as well, has been sporadically interrupted ever since. “We experienced many power surges on Wednesday resulting in various circuit breakers and a control box burning out,” said Ilse Marais from the Platz Am Meer shopping centre to namib times.
Although the shopping centre has backup generators, these only kick in when the power supply is interrupted, but does not protect against surges. “We are not happy that we weren’t warned that there are issues with the power supply. We could have prepared ourselves better as we have a lot of sensitive equipment in the mall,” she added.
Nangombe apologized for any inconvenience caused, saying that the technicians have been working around the clock to solve the problem. “I don’t foresee the problem to last until the weekend and hope it will be sorted soon,” he said. According to him some issues in certain areas have been resolved, but others are still being investigated. Yesterday the power supply to areas in the CBD cut off sporadically over the course of the morning. By 11:00 the power supply to some big businesses and surrounding areas, including the Strand Hotel, PicknPay, Spur, FNB, the Dome and the sport fields was still off.
Nangombe added that the faults on the cables can be caused by various factors. “They can be due to the weather, additional strain or wear and tear to name a few,” he said