Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 25) — A number of areas in Mindanao are suffering from unscheduled rotational power interruptions after a transmission tower in Lanao del Norte was bombed on Monday afternoon, the grid operator said.
The affected areas are the entire Zamboanga Peninsula, the entire Misamis Occidental, and parts of Lanao del Norte, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) reported on Tuesday.
“We have other facilities serving affected areas, kaya ‘di naman blackout, rotational lang [so it’s not blackout, just rotational outage],” NGCP spokesperson Cynthia Alabanza said.
The corporation said Tower 8 in Sitio San Isidro, Barangay Bagombayan in Kauswagan town, toppled from a blast, forcing NGCP to carry out load dropping or rotational brownout “to prevent overloading of the remaining line.”
“Responding authorities confirmed that lawless elements used IEDs (improvised explosive devices) to bomb the tower,” the company statement read. “The incident is under investigation.”
NGCP said a still unidentified person was found at the scene with fatal injuries, but it is unclear if this is related to the bombing.
It added that it is working with law enforcers and the military to secure the area for repair works.
NGCP warned that those who conduct suspicious activities within or along the power transmission corridor may be punished with 12 years jail time or a fine of up to ₱200,000, or both.
“The company stresses that bombings only serve to increase the burden of the public, which must suffer through power interruptions when towers are bombed,” it said.
