Kenya was engulfed in darkness on Sunday evening as the nation experienced its third nationwide power outage in just three months. The blackout, attributed to a “system disturbance,” paralyzed major parts of the country, including the crucial Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi.
The outage began around 8 p.m. local time, plunging millions into darkness and disrupting essential services. Eldoret Airport in western Kenya was also affected, with emergency power generators failing to activate.
State-run utility Kenya Power, the sole electricity supplier and distributor in the country, blamed the incident on a technical issue with the power grid. In a statement, the company apologized for the inconvenience and assured customers that technicians were working to restore power as quickly as possible.
This latest outage comes amidst growing frustration with Kenya Power’s services. The company has faced years of criticism for poor performance, alleged corruption, and high electricity costs. Kenyans have expressed their dissatisfaction on social media, calling for answers and demanding improved service.
While some regions regained power within two hours, a similar blackout last month left most of the country without electricity for over 12 hours. The worst outage, however, occurred on August 25th, marking the longest disruption in Kenya’s history. Responsibility for that incident remains disputed, with Kenya Power blaming a failure at Africa’s largest wind farm and the wind farm attributing the issue to the power grid.
In Nairobi and other areas, it took nearly 24 hours for power to be restored following the August outage. Kenyans are increasingly concerned about the frequency and duration of these blackouts, particularly given the current economic challenges and high fuel prices. The outages have caused millions of dollars in losses to businesses and further burdened the struggling economy.
The latest blackout serves as a stark reminder of the importance of a reliable electricity supply for Kenya’s economic and social development. Kenyans are demanding urgent action from Kenya Power to address the root causes of these outages and ensure a stable and affordable electricity supply for all.
