HAILSTORM LEAVES 4 000 POWER OUTAGES

MBABANE – A ferocious hailstorm that particularly battered Pigg’s Peak, Mbabane and Manzini on Friday left 4 000 power outages.

Bongani Khaya Mavuso, the Marketing and Corporate Communications Manager at Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC), said they were attending to all the 4 000 reported power outages. The government issued a public notice on the power outages yesterday. He assured EEC customers that they would be assisted. Mavuso mentioned that some of the company’s power lines, cables, metres, PG clamps and circuit breakers were damaged.

“Our company is doing everything possible to have the electricity restored within reasonable time,” said Mavuso. In the meantime, he pleaded with all affected customers to be patient as some of the areas were inaccessible because of the wet conditions. Most importantly, he urged them to exercise safety precautions by avoiding coming into contact with any fallen power lines. All power outages, he advised, must be reported to 800 9000 (toll free) or 2508 3333 (standard rates apply). They can also do so via the EEC self service platform *8888#.

Report the outages

EEC customers are also advised to report the outages to callcentre@eec.co.sz or Facebook inbox: Eswatini Electricity Company. A week ago, the storm terribly hit the Shiselweni Region where 745 people were affected. By this time last year, the hailstorm battered homes, leaving schools and businesses roofless. It is said that if there is a lot of moisture in the air and the wind holding it up is very strong, a hailstone will grow bigger. Experts say climate change makes these conditions more likely, as warmer air contains more water vapour. Powerful storms - with powerful up draughts - also become more likely as weather patterns change.

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