By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: A major power outage hit cities and towns on Monday, including the capital Islamabad and the commercial hub Karachi, due to a fault in transmission lines, officials said.
The Ministry of Energy said in a statement the country’s National Grid went down at 7.34 a.m. local time, “causing a widespread breakdown in the power system”.
“System maintenance work is progressing rapidly,” the statement added.
A “limited number of grids” in the capital Islamabad and the city of Peshawar have had power restored, the ministry said.
It is unclear how long the outage will last, and efforts are underway to restore power to various parts of the country.
Local media reported that it could take as long as 12 hours to fully restore electricity.
K-Electric spokesman said there were reports of “multiple outages from different parts of the city”. “We are investigating the issue and will keep this space posted.”
The two transmission lines from Guddu to Quetta tripped, according to Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO). The company added that 22 districts of Balochistan, including Quetta, are without power.
Earlier in October last year, the country experienced a major power breakdown that deprived large swathes of the country, including provincial capitals Karachi and Lahore, of electricity, for more than 12 hours.
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