(MENAFN) Kenya experienced a widespread power blackout on Sunday evening, marking the third nationwide outage in as many months and raising concerns of possible sabotage. The electricity failure, which commenced around 8 PM, paralyzed significant parts of the country, impacting vital facilities, including the main airport in the capital, Nairobi. Transport Minister Kipchumba Murkomen called for a formal investigation into "possible acts of sabotage and coverup" in response to the recurring outages.
The state-run utility, Kenya Power, attributed the blackout to a "system disturbance" and assured the public that technicians were addressing the issue. The outage disrupted essential services and affected various regions, leading to concerns about the reliability and stability of the country's power infrastructure.
Kenya Power later issued an update stating that electricity service had been restored to some parts of the country, including residential districts in the capital. However, many areas in Kenya remained without power as of Monday morning, underscoring the challenges in swiftly resolving these disruptions.
This recent blackout follows similar incidents in the past months, with the August 25 outage being the longest and most significant disruption in Kenya's history. The cause of that particular outage remains unclear, as conflicting explanations were provided by the power company and Africa's largest wind farm, both blaming each other for the failure.
The frequency of power outages has sparked public outcry, with Kenyans expressing frustration on social media and demanding accountability from Kenya Power. Some compared the situation unfavorably to power companies in Nigeria and South Africa, where periodic rationing or load-shedding is common. The call for an investigation into potential sabotage reflects growing concerns about the reliability of Kenya's power infrastructure and the need for a comprehensive and transparent solution to address recurring outages.
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