CEB to conduct internal investigation into sudden island-wide power failure

Power supply has been restored across the country following the sudden major outage at around 5:10 p.m. yesterday (Dec.09), the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) says.

The island-wide power failures were attributed to a breakdown in the transmission line from Kotmale to Biyagama.

State-owned utility said it took ‘step by step’ measures to ensure complete power restoration by around 11:00 p.m.

Eng. Noel Priyantha, the CEB’s media spokesman, said a comprehensive internal investigation would be initiated into the incident.

However, the cause of the transmission line breakdown which caused the island-wide power outages is yet to be determined, according to the CEB.

Against this backdrop, Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Deshabandu Tennakoon had instructed all police stations to stay on high alert to ensure security across all areas.

Meanwhile, the water supply in several areas was either disrupted or supplied at low pressure due to the power outages. The National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) said it managed to restore the water supply in the affected localities within a few hours.

Nevertheless, the Railways Department said train operations remained uninterrupted by the island-wide power outages.

The Mahaweli Authority said several sluice gates of Polgolla, Victoria, Randenigala and Rantembe reservoirs were opened as a result of the situation.

Such major power outages were first reported in March 2016. In August 2020, a 6-hour sudden power outage occurred due to a breakdown in the transmission lines in Kerawalapitiya.

In addition, in December 2021, the electricity supply was disrupted due to a technical fault in the Kothmale - Biyagama transmission system. Following each of these cases, the authorities had taken steps to make recommendations on the measures to be taken to prevent the recurrence of such power failures.

Regardless, there were sudden power outages of nearly 6 hours yesterday and State Minister Indika Anuruddha told Ada Derana that a special investigation would be conducted in this regard.