The ‘may liwanag ang buhay’ mantra did not prevail over the wrath of typhoon Carina after many parts of Metro Manila and nearby provinces were submerged into extreme flooding on Wednesday (July 24) and that triggered electricity service cut-off to many consumers, yet power utility giant Manila Electric Company (Meralco) indicated that it is working overtime to fully restore power supply to all affected consumers by Friday morning.

Owing to that, many households had to endure long hours of blackouts, but Meralco First Vice President and Head of Networks Froilan J. Savet explained that they had to “intentionally de-energized electric facilities, on the request of the LGUs (local government units), to prevent safety risks in areas submerged in floods.”

He added “Meralco's restoration efforts are currently underway; however, progress is being impeded by the complexity and challenges posed by the heavily flooded areas.”

From more than 662,000 subscribers that were forced to grapple in the dark because of the flood-induced disruption in electricity service, Meralco Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications Joe Zaldarriaga emphasized that as of 12 noon on Thursday (July 25), that was already down to less 300,000 customers.

The magnitude of affected customers had been counted based on subscribers served per feeder – as culled from the data of Meralco’s advanced distribution management system (ADMS).

“Despite the obstacles we face, Meralco is actively monitoring the situation and prioritizing power restoration efforts. The safety of our crews and the general public remains our top priority during this challenging period,” Savet asserted.

On the pace of restoration, Zaldarriaga conveyed that “hopefully half by day’s end and completed by tomorrow (Friday) weather permitting.”

Based on mid-day update from the utility company on Thursday, 224,998 customers in Metro Manila were still not able to regain their electricity service as of press time; then 30,992 subscribers were still ‘powerless’ in Bulacan; 21,930 in Rizal; and 8,314 customers in Cavite.

The utility firm reported that the return of electricity services came faster for less affected parts of its franchise area – with Laguna already having relatively lower number of customers waiting for supply reconnection at 2,835; while Batangas had 98 and Quezon just had 21 subscribers yet to be re-energized.

“Meralco assures the public that it is working round the clock to immediately restore electricity service to customers affected by typhoon Carina and the habagat rains,” the company stressed.

The power firm reiterated that “the outages are predominantly due to heavy flooding across Meralco’s service areas,” adding that “fallen trees and foreign objects obstructing power lines also caused power disruptions in several areas.”

When asked on the possibility of climate-proofing power utilities when it comes to flooding incidents, Zaldarriaga stated that “there is a need to strengthen the distribution backbone, but flooding incidents continue to be challenging.”

While remaining restoration works are ongoing, the Meralco executive appealed to their customers for “patience and understanding,” as he emphasized that “the safety of our customers and Meralco line crews is our top priority as we continue to actively monitor the situation.”

In the areas served by the electric cooperatives (ECs), the National Electrification Administration (NEA) conveyed that 114,565 customers were plunged in darkness following typhoon Carina’s passage in various parts of Luzon.

As of Wednesday, it specified that at least six regional power utilities suffered partial power interruption; while only one EC had had been pummeled by total blackouts.

Affected customers had been those served by electric cooperatives in Zambales, Batangas, Central Pangasinan, Ilocos Norte, Benguet, Abra, Tarlac, Occidental Mindoro and Peninsula Electric Cooperative in Bataan.

The electrification agency similarly qualified the initial cost of damage to facilities of the regional power utilities topped P3.142 million.