Millions suffer one-day blackout in Java and Bali<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Millions of people in Java and Bali were angered
\nyesterday by a power blackout which lasted until late in the
\nevening in many areas.<\/p>\n
The power failure hit most of the capital city, its
\nsurrounding towns and several other towns in Java and Bali,
\ncreating chaos at intersections as most traffic lights were out.<\/p>\n
The massive power outage began at about 10.00 a.m. and lasted
\nonly a few hours in several cities.<\/p>\n
But most areas in the capital regained power only after 8 p.m.<\/p>\n
Electric rail services between the city and the suburbs,
\nincluding Bogor, Bekasi and Tangerang were interrupted, leaving
\nmany weekend travelers stranded for hours.<\/p>\n
The last major power failure to hit the country was in
\nJanuary, 1992.<\/p>\n
Several hotels in the city were suddenly crowded by families
\nwho sought a more convenient place for their weekend.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Hilton International, Central Jakarta, the
\nAmbhara, Kemang Hotel and the Crystal in South Jakarta were among
\nthose fully booked.<\/p>\n
\"People said they couldn't even bathe at home,\" a reservations
\nofficer said.<\/p>\n
Several people angered by the power failure expressed their
\noutrage to The Jakarta Post. One of the callers even suggested
\nthe minister of mines and energy resign over the incident. Others
\nreported frustration after enduring traffic jams from Cianjur to
\nPuncak and Jakarta although police had deployed extra traffic
\nofficials.<\/p>\n
The situation caused confusion as most PLN offices either
\nrefused to answer inquiries or provided contradictory
\nexplanations.<\/p>\n
\"No one can tell us what's going on,\" a reader in Cilandak
\nsaid. PLN phone lines were busy all day.<\/p>\n
Djiteng Marsudi, president of the State Electricity Company
\n(PLN), said later in the evening that the power failure was
\ncaused by technical problems at the 500-kilovolt transmission
\nnetworks between the huge Suralaya power station in the
\nwesternmost tip of West Java and the load control station in
\nGandul, south of here.<\/p>\n
\"The technical problems interrupted power supply from
\nSuralaya,\" Djiteng said.<\/p>\n
The Suralaya power station, with a total supply of 1,600
\nmegawatts, is the single largest generator in Java. Its power is
\ntransmitted through the Java-Bali interconnection system.<\/p>\n
The Gandul station is the coordinator and controller of power
\nfor the Java-Bali power interconnection system.<\/p>\n
But the blackout did not affect areas connected to the power
\nstation in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Hospitals, hotels and the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport
\ncontinued activities as usual backed up by generators. Smaller
\nestablishments, like 24-hour chemists, did not fare so well.
\nBarberers in Bogor attended to clients with candles.<\/p>\n
Some stalls increased candle prices from Rp 100 to Rp 250.<\/p>\n
Several automatic teller machines were out of order. Motorists
\nqueuing at gas stations left empty-handed as not all had
\ngenerator power.<\/p>\n
The Indolink pager service sent a message to customers at 6
\np.m., saying it would postpone messages until electricity was
\nback to normal.<\/p>\n
Celebrations were also disturbed, including the wedding of the
\nson of Hadi Abednego, a high ranking Ministry of Health official.<\/p>\n
Sports fans were disappointed as they could not watch
\nyesterday's soccer and boxing matches. Power was cut prior to the
\nOscar de la Hoya vs Pernell Whitaker boxing match. Dozens called
\nthe private television station RCTI to ask for the results of the
\nsoccer match between Indonesia and Yemen. (team)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/millions-suffer-one-day-blackout-in-java-and-bali-1447893297",
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