Millions suffer one-day blackout in Java and Bali

JAKARTA (JP): Millions of people in Java and Bali were angered yesterday by a power blackout which lasted until late in the evening in many areas.

The power failure hit most of the capital city, its surrounding towns and several other towns in Java and Bali, creating chaos at intersections as most traffic lights were out.

The massive power outage began at about 10.00 a.m. and lasted only a few hours in several cities.

But most areas in the capital regained power only after 8 p.m.

Electric rail services between the city and the suburbs, including Bogor, Bekasi and Tangerang were interrupted, leaving many weekend travelers stranded for hours.

The last major power failure to hit the country was in January, 1992.

Several hotels in the city were suddenly crowded by families who sought a more convenient place for their weekend.

The Jakarta Hilton International, Central Jakarta, the Ambhara, Kemang Hotel and the Crystal in South Jakarta were among those fully booked.

"People said they couldn't even bathe at home," a reservations officer said.

Several people angered by the power failure expressed their outrage to The Jakarta Post. One of the callers even suggested the minister of mines and energy resign over the incident. Others reported frustration after enduring traffic jams from Cianjur to Puncak and Jakarta although police had deployed extra traffic officials.

The situation caused confusion as most PLN offices either refused to answer inquiries or provided contradictory explanations.

"No one can tell us what's going on," a reader in Cilandak said. PLN phone lines were busy all day.

Djiteng Marsudi, president of the State Electricity Company (PLN), said later in the evening that the power failure was caused by technical problems at the 500-kilovolt transmission networks between the huge Suralaya power station in the westernmost tip of West Java and the load control station in Gandul, south of here.

"The technical problems interrupted power supply from Suralaya," Djiteng said.

The Suralaya power station, with a total supply of 1,600 megawatts, is the single largest generator in Java. Its power is transmitted through the Java-Bali interconnection system.

The Gandul station is the coordinator and controller of power for the Java-Bali power interconnection system.

But the blackout did not affect areas connected to the power station in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta.

Hospitals, hotels and the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport continued activities as usual backed up by generators. Smaller establishments, like 24-hour chemists, did not fare so well. Barberers in Bogor attended to clients with candles.

Some stalls increased candle prices from Rp 100 to Rp 250.

Several automatic teller machines were out of order. Motorists queuing at gas stations left empty-handed as not all had generator power.

The Indolink pager service sent a message to customers at 6 p.m., saying it would postpone messages until electricity was back to normal.

Celebrations were also disturbed, including the wedding of the son of Hadi Abednego, a high ranking Ministry of Health official.

Sports fans were disappointed as they could not watch yesterday's soccer and boxing matches. Power was cut prior to the Oscar de la Hoya vs Pernell Whitaker boxing match. Dozens called the private television station RCTI to ask for the results of the soccer match between Indonesia and Yemen. (team)