A one-hour heavy downpour compounded with thunder storm and lightning in Masalani town in Ijara sub county has resulted to a power outage in the town since yesterday afternoon.
According to Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) officer in charge of Hola substation Mr Joseph Silas, two power poles had gone down in Muhumed Dahir sub location due to the heavy rains resulting to the power outage.
The KPLC officer said engineers will be sent to the scene from Hola substation to rectify the power outage so long as the road from Boji to Masalani will be motorable.
However, Masalani community human rights watchdog chairman Mr Abdullahi Abdi said the rain and thunder that lasted for one hour yesterday has destroyed some make shift structure sending people in panic.
Mr Abdi appealed to the leadership of Ijara constituency to open an office at Masalani town to cater for the entire Ijara constituency which comprises of Ijara, Bothai and Hulugho sub counties in Garissa County.
The community leaders and elders called on Ijara leadership lead by Ijara MP Abdi Ali Sheikhow to engage the KPLC managing director to open an office in Masalani and utilize part of his National Government Constituency Development Fund to put up a KPLC substation in Masalani in liaison with KPLC top management and Ministry for Energy to address the power issue as lack of power paralyses business and office operations.
In the meantime, KPLC customers who have solar panels from Delight company as backup are better off than those who are solely connected to the KPLC national grid from Hola KPLC substation.
Others not adversely affected by the power outage are business operators and institutions which have installed generators for power backup for their business especially petrol stations and private hospitals.
By Mohamed Dahir
