Around 8,000 customers of Davao Light Power and Company are isolated from the power system because of the danger of short circuit and electrocution in the flooded areas.
However, officials of the power company, headed by Roger Velasco, promised to fully restore electricity by December 29, Friday.
The affected areas are 21– 20 in Davao City and one in Davao Del Norte, but Davao Light crew workers are now working on 13 areas namely Jade valley, Julliville, Matina Grabahan and Bankerohan among others, said Mark A. Valencia, vice president of DLPC engineering department of DLPC during the press conference yesterday.
Valencia said residents of San Antonio, Bacaca, Jade Valley, Waan and Tamugan still don’t have electricity. However, he said most parts of DDF-Mandug, El Rio Phase Five, Marfori, Spring Village in Davao City and Purok 5-A Dujali in Davao del Norte already have their power restored. Some parts of DECA Tigatto, Gem Village and Juliville Village also have power now.
Posing a challenge the power company are Gem Village and Jade Valley because these areas are still under water.
Davao Light Power will reportedly shoulder the replacement of 8,000 meters costing P1,500 each, aside from the services of the 100 electricians that they hired to help the customers free up the water from the meter to the safety switch and some testing equipment in order to reach the deadline.
“This is the worst flooding (I think) since my employment life here in Davao Light. We isolated these customers because the flood has reached the roof or beyond that, so our meters are wet and the wirings inside the houses of our customers are also wet so we have to protect our customers,” said Velasco, Davao Light executive vice president and chief operating officer.
“Safety of our customers is of paramount importance to the company and in our restoration efforts, we have to ensure that possible incidents of fire and electrocution are avoided,” he added.
Velasco appealed for customers understanding and apologized that it took them quite a while to restori the power in affected areas. As of yesterday, December 27, Davao Light has only been able to restore 32 percent or 2,560 of 8,000 connections affected.
