Blackout in Maiduguri as Boko Haram destroys another electricity tower

Boko Haram insurgents on Saturday bombed two transmission towers in Maiduguri, Borno state capital. 

The attack comes about three days after the Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) announced that power has been restored in Maiduguri and other areas in the state.

The affected areas had been in darkness for two months following an attack by the insurgents on an electricity tower in January.

While the repairs were in progress, two Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) staff members sustained injuries on February 27, when their vehicle struck a landmine in Borno.

The team of engineers from the TCN and YEDC were on their way to a site in Minok where they were working to restore electricity in Maiduguri when the blast occurred.

The latest attack on the transmission line was said to have occurred at 5:56am on Saturday morning — after the insurgents planted explosives on each leg of the tower.

The attack affected T152 and T153 power tower on Maiduguri–Damaturu 330 kilovolts on the same line route of the previous incident.