Blackout in parts of Rivers, Bayelsa as vandals destroy four transmission towers

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says four of its towers along the Owerri-Ahoada 132 kilo volt (kV) double circuit line have been destroyed by vandals, causing a total collapse.

Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s general manager of public affairs, spoke in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

Mbah said the affected towers, T171 to T174, were compromised, leading to their collapses at approximately 6:23 pm on Tuesday.

She added that the towers were discovered after a “failed trial reclosure” that prompted a subsequent patrol.

A reclosure refers to the automatic re-energisation of a power line after a fault has been detected and the line has been temporarily de-energised.

“Investigations confirmed that the towers’ collapse was a direct result of vandalism,” Mbah said.

“This incident has disrupted power supply to the Ahoda, Gbarain, and Yenagoa 132kV transmission substations, affecting some parts of Rivers State and the entire Bayelsa.”

Mbah said a team of engineers, led by Emmanuel Apka, the general manager of Port Harcourt region, had visited the site to assess the extent of the damage.

She said the TCN is making “frantic” efforts to mobilise personnel and materials for the repair of the vandalised towers so that bulk power supply can be restored to the affected states.

“TCN condemns this act of vandalism, which continues to undermine efforts made to put in place a robust transmission grid,” she said.

“We are again calling on host communities to join us in the urgent fight against the vandalism of power infrastructure.”

On January 20, the TCN said over 18 transmission towers were vandalised between January 9 and 14 in Rivers, Abia, and Kano states.

The company said the recurring vandalism of electricity infrastructure poses a great challenge to the operations of the company.

The organisation also said it is collaborating with law enforcement agencies to increase line patrols along the electricity infrastructure.