Lightning shuts down Demerara power system

The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) today said that at approximately 7:58hrs this morning, the link between the Garden of Eden (GOE) and Sophia was broken when both sections of the two transmission lines from Golden Grove and Garden of Eden were struck by lightning. Simultaneously, a GPL statement said, the transmission line linking the Demerara and Berbice Systems, from Onverwagt to Canefield, also tripped.

GPL said that the sudden loss of generating capacity from the GOE stations and the capacity available from the Skeldon factory resulted in overload and trips on machines at the New Kingston Station. As a result, there was a total shutdown within the Demerara Interconnected System, while one feeder from Canefield to Auchlyne was taken out in East Berbice.

The first set of customers – sections on the East Bank of Demerara, was repowered at 8:45hrs and the link with Berbice rejoined at approximately 9:00hrs. By 9:45 power had been restored to all consumers, GPL said.

It apologized for the inconvenience caused.