Power is gradually being restored to major cities in Pakistan after being hit by a massive power outage.
The distribution system for electricity in the country of more than 210 million people is a complex – and delicate – web, and a problem in one part of the network can lead to a breakdown nationwide.
The latest eclipse on Saturday at 23.41 local time (1841 GMT) was caused by an engineering error in southern Pakistan, which left the system down and power stations shut down, said Power Minister Omar Ayub Khan. said a press conference. in Islamabad.
“Our experts are trying to determine the exact location of the fault, which we have not yet been able to figure out.”
Khan said it would take several hours because the area was still covered with dense fog, and that the power supply had been partially restored in most areas of Punjab, the most populous province, as well as the economic hub Karachi in the south. .
The eclipse plunged all major cities in Pakistan into darkness, including the capital Islamabad, Karachi and the second largest city, Lahore.
There were no immediate reports of disruption at hospitals, which can often rely on backup generators.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Water and Power said electricity had been restored in some parts of the country, but many areas in Lahore and Karachi were still waiting.
NetBlocks, which monitors internet disruptions, said online connections in the country had collapsed as a result of the eclipse. Compounds were at 62% of normal levels tweeted.
It was Pakistan’s second major power outage in less than three years. In May 2018, the power supply was partially interrupted for more than nine hours.
In 2015, an apparent rebel attack on a major power line plunged about 80% of Pakistan into darkness.
That eclipse, one of the worst in the history of Pakistan, caused electricity to be cut off in major cities nationwide, including Islamabad, and affected one of the country’s international airports.