Amapá Statewide Blackout in Fourth Straight Day; Ten Days Needed to Restore Full Power

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Since last Tuesday night, November 3rd, 13 of the 16 cities in the northern Brazilian state of Amapá have been affected by a blackout due to a fire in the Macapá Substation, according to the National Electric System Operator (ONS).

The power outage, which has been going on for over 60 hours, impacts the basic needs of 90 percent of the population, including Macapá, the capital of Amapá, and its metropolitan region, and has forced the state government to declare a state of emergency. In a press conference on Friday, Minister of Mines and Energy Bento Albuquerque promised to fully reinstate power in the state within ten days.

The blackout began on Tuesday night, when Macapá was battered by a severe storm and, according to local government suspicions, lightning struck transformer #1 of Macapá Substation, owned by the LMTE company responsible for the state’s energy, causing a fire on the site.

A Disturbance Analysis Report has already been commissioned to confirm the cause of the fire, but it may take up to 30 days to be completed. Among Amapá’s cities, only Oiapoque, Laranjal do Jari and Vitória do Jari, which use independent power systems, have not been affected by the blackout.

The power outage has several consequences in the most essential services for the majority of the state’s population. In Macapá, lines formed to collect water and purchase other basic items. Mineral water, running water, and ice are lacking, and purchases are hampered by the unavailability of ATMs and card terminals.

Internet and telephone services have also been down for three days. The majority of gas stations in the state do not have a generator and are therefore closed. There are also local commercial inventory issues since many goods need refrigeration to prevent spoiling. In Macapá, private generators enable the operation of some hospitals.

State of emergency

On Friday, November 6th, Amapá Governor Waldez Góes signed the declaration of a state of emergency, which establishes an emergency plan to serve the population and enables the state to request resources from the federal government to serve the cities.

The same approach was taken by the Mayor of Macapá Clécio Luis, who declared a state of public calamity for 30 days in the city as a result of the challenges caused by the blackout combined with the plight of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Opposition leader in the federal Senate Randolfe Rodrigues announced on his social media that he would be filing a lawsuit in an Amapá federal court demanding the federal government supply water and basic food baskets, open an investigation by the Federal Police and convict the people responsible, in order to “repair the material and moral damages of each inhabitant of Amapá who has been affected by this chaos.”

Other important opposition figures, such as former presidential candidates Fernando Haddad and Ciro Gomes, also publicly demanded measures from the Bolsonaro government with the hashtag #SOSAmapá.

The reaction came through the President’s son, Carlos Bolsonaro, a city councilor in Rio de Janeiro: “The government, the Chief of Staff and the Ministry (…) have been working on the Amapá issue from the very beginning, through a crisis cabinet. But for those who can’t read, don’t want to seek information or are really foul, Twitter is their preferred sport”.

President Jair Bolsonaro, on the other hand, has limited himself to re-tweeting messages reporting some of the measures taken by the federal government.

Since the blackout occurred, the Ministry of Mines and Energy has established a Crisis Management Office that, in addition to the ONS, relies on the cooperation of ANEEL (National Electrical Energy Agency), Eletrobrás, and LMTE. In his latest statement, Minister Bento Albuquerque assured that there is a plan for the “ready” reinstatement of 70 percent of power, but the operation is “complex”.

“The equipment has already been repaired in its physical part and now the oil filtering of the equipment is underway. To have an idea of the volume, there are 45,000 liters of oil, and we have to make sure it is in working condition”, said Albuquerque.

Source: El País