Bali blackout: Power back on after under-sea cable issue throws tourist hotspot into chaos
International travellers, tourists and locals are breathing a sigh of relief after power was restored on the island of Bali after an under-sea cable crucial to their power supply was severed.
The ensuing blackout which affected areas across the entire island, left airport staff scrambling and some of the Indonesian islands’ biggest motorways without power.
After hours in the dark the international airport began to manage inbound and outbound flight traffic using backup generators, the airport’s general manager Ahmad Syaugi Shahab said in a statement, although several departures were experiencing delays.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“State utility PLN managed to restore most of the electricity supply in Bali,” the spokesperson of President Prabowo Subianto, Prasetyo Hadi said in a statement after calling PLN’s CEO.
“God willing, power connection in Bali will be fully restored tonight (Friday night),” he said.
The world renowned tourist destination was plunged into darkness at around 4pm local time on Friday with reports filtering out that the island had basically lost all connectivity.
Local newspaper The Bali Sun reported that backup generators were activated in some areas and mobile phone signals remained, however residents and tourists were warned about flow-on effects from the outage.
The national electric provider PT PLN confirmed that a gradual recovery process is under way after the electricity connection was interrupted.
PLN Manager, Wayan Eka Susana, said “Currently the recovery is being carried out in stages by officers in the field. We will provide information on developments periodically.”
He confirmed that an investigation as to the cause of the blackout is underway, though initial reports suggest that there is a fault in the Java-Bali transfer cable.
In an update posted on the PLN Distribusi Bali Instagram account at 7.45pm local time, the energy provider shared “Developments until now at 19.50 WITA the electricity supply has been restored to 50 percent.
“Continue to monitor the latest information on the official PLN UID Bali account thank you for your support, prayers, and patience.”
As the island went into blackout there was chaos on Bali’s busiest highways as the Friday night rush hour kicked off.
With a power cut, traffic light systems went down followed by widespread reports of gridlock congestion and a series of collisions.
