Press Release
UNUSUAL WEATHER DAMAGES GPL INFRASTRUCTURE
Georgetown, Guyana, Thursday, July 9, 2020: On Wednesday, July 8, unusually high winds and heavy rainfall caused widespread damages to Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Transmission and Distribution (T&D) structures in Demerara, Berbice and Essequibo affecting service to customers.
DEMERARA-BERBICE INTERCONNECTED SYSTEM (DBIS)
At approximately 05:05 hrs. yesterday, the L16 Transmission Line which links the Sophia and Good Hope substations tripped when a tree fell on the structure. Additionally, the L 22 Transmission Line in Berbice was knocked out of service by fallen trees and poles. Further, several medium and low voltage distribution power lines were damaged due to the heavy winds and fallen trees.
Emergency teams were dispatched to assess the damages and conduct remedial works. Despite the challenges, our emergency teams worked throughout the day and into the evening to restore power to affected areas.
Incremental restoration continued following the completion of the major remedial works until the final area was repowered at approximately 19:00 hrs.
ESSEQUIBO COAST
At approximately 5:45 hrs., the main primary line and structures on the Essequibo Coast were damaged by flying debris (zinc sheets) and fallen trees.
Following the completion of remedial work, all areas were repowered at approximately 10:30 hrs.
GPL offers sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused. We wish to assure customers that we will continue to improve our generation and T&D Systems to further improve reliability and resilience, with several ongoing and planned improvement projects.