Nearly 90% of Artemisa remains without electricity a week after Hurricane Rafael struck the province with full force as it moved through western Cuba.
As of this Wednesday, only 26,384 customers – 12.91% – have electricity service, according to a report from the Electric Company of Artemisa, as cited by the television center ARTV.
This means that 87.09% of customers remain without power, seven days after the nationwide blackout caused by the disconnection of the National Electroenergetic System (SEN), which authorities attributed to the strong winds of the hurricane, even though it had not yet reached Cuba.
The restoration of electrical service in Artemisa is progressing very slowly. The day before, six days after the hurricane passed, only 2% of the province had electricity.
The Electric Company of Artemisa reported on Wednesday that there is a power outage of 106.74 MW and provided details on the status of the power lines, of which 93.75% of the 110 kV lines are "operational," 35.14% of the 33 kV lines, and only 11.97% of the primary distribution lines.
Lineworker brigades are currently working on circuits 1570 and 3185 in Artemisa; 3305 in Güira de Melena; 3517 in Mariel; 5050 in Bauta; 3210 in Guanajay/Caimito, and the circuits of the ZDEM (Mariel Special Development Zone).
According to a report from Artemisa TV, the electrical linemen in the province are "making progress in restoring the electrical infrastructure following Hurricane Rafael," with the assistance of teams from other regions, such as those from Ciego de Ávila.
In the municipality of Caimito, "the first stage of the work involves restoring the electrical service needed to power the water pumping, progressing with the primary 33.4 kV line."
ARTV reported that the "goal" is to "continue restoring electricity as quickly as possible" and revealed that "the residents of Caimito have been without electricity for over a week."
In a meeting with Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de La O Levy and provincial leaders, it was instructed to prioritize the supply of water and electrical services in the municipalities of Artemisa and San Antonio de los Baños.
The information from the television channel confirmed that the efforts of 56 lineworker brigades and support teams have led to "improvements in the vital conditions of the territory."
In San Antonio de los Baños, local brigades, with support from personnel from the province of Cienfuegos, are working to restore electrical service in some circuits near the Iván Portuondo hospital and water supply sources before tonight, according to the news report.
Artemisa was the province most affected by Hurricane Rafael, which caused severe damage to homes, crops, and infrastructure as it passed through the area from south to north on November 6th.
The cyclone knocked down hundreds of power poles, and its powerful winds destroyed several high-voltage towers of 220,000 and 110,000 volts on the Havana-Artemisa highway, reducing them to twisted heaps of iron.
As of Tuesday, damage reports indicated that, in terms of telephone communications, the landline network was functioning at 61.2%, while the mobile network was operating at just 34.4%.
Damage has been assessed in 15,453 homes, although this is a preliminary figure that is likely to rise.
Meanwhile, in agriculture, the cyclone wreaked havoc on 15,192 hectares of crops, of which only about 992 have begun to recover. By the day before, around 546 tons of food had been gathered.
In Havana, the second hardest-hit area of the country by the hurricane, the power company reported that over 823,000 customers—95%—had restored their electricity service by Tuesday. However, thousands were still without power due to the damage caused by the weather event.
The transmission lines to the province of Pinar del Río were damaged by the passage of Rafael. It took more than five days for thousands of families to once again enjoy electricity in that area, as they were reconnected to the national grid on Monday night.
Filed under: