Andhra Pradesh floods: Linemen swim and climb to bring back power

GUNTUR

: Field teams of Southern

Power

Distribution Company Limited (SPDCL) have been working overtime in flood-hit areas to restore power supply and their courage is laudable.


For two days now, the teams are reaching various island villages in in Repalle constituency on boats and carrying out maintenance work. Taking the assistance of NDRF personnel, the

linemen

are reaching the points where power supply was tripped. Linemen were seen swimming or wading through water, trying to restore the supply lines. The aim of the teams is to bring power back by Monday.

About 25 villages in Kollur, Kollipara, Duggirala and Repalle mandals have no power supply following the flooding at the local sub-station and uprooting of supply lines. After this, superintending engineer K Jayabharath Rao had directed field officials to pull of the supply from the Juvvalapalem sub-station, which was already submerged. Senior officials have issued standard instructions that supply should not be resumed until the linemen completed the repairs on all lines.

Divisional executive engineer K Muralikrishna Yadav rushed to the flood-hit villages on Sunday to monitor restoration works. “Over 14,000 services were hit due to the

flood

. We are working overtime to restore the supplies at the earliest possible,” said Yadav. He said teams have already identified all the breakdown points and work is going on at war footing.

Supplies from three 33/11 kV sub-stations at Juvvalapalem, Epuru Lanka and Chilumur were put off to attend the repairs.

“Over 200km of supply line was snapped. Water logging is also slowing down restoration work,” Rao told TOI. He said that additional teams will be deployed.