Niël Terblanché
Residents of towns in southern Namibia, including Ariamsvlei and Noordoewer, along with farms in the area, have been plunged into darkness due to an ongoing power outage that began at 14:46 on Sunday.
The blackout, attributed to an electrical fault on a key transformer at the Harib substation, has left communities without power and disrupted business and border crossing operations.
NamPower has identified the cause of the outage as a fault on the second transformer (220/132 kV 40 MVA) at the Harib Substation.
The national utility corporation stated that technical personnel are in the process of transporting a replacement transformer from Windhoek, with expectations to restore power to the affected areas by Wednesday.
NamPower has issued a statement, apologizing for the inconvenience caused to the residents of Ariamsvlei, Noordoewer, and the surrounding areas.
NamPower has also issued a caution to the public to treat all power lines and electrical points as “live” during the outage.
This warning is a reminder of the dangers associated with assuming that power outlets and lines are safe to touch or approach during a blackout, as electricity can be restored at any moment without prior notice.
According to the statement, the effort to transport and install a new transformer stresses the logistical and technical challenges faced by NamPower in maintaining a reliable power supply across Namibia’s remote areas.
NamPower’s proactive communication and response to the crisis have been noted by the affected communities, who await the restoration of power with anticipation.
