St Ann communities plunged back into darkness after cutting of JPS pole

The Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) is condemning what it describes as a "shocking act of sabotage" in Bonham Spring, St Ann, that plunged several communities back into darkness, shortly after crews had successfully restored power.

The company says teams conducting patrols discovered that a freshly planted utility pole had been deliberately cut at the base, causing it to topple.

It says the criminal act resulted in a sudden outage affecting the Bonham Hill Housing Scheme, Hand-to-Mouth, Refuge Hill and the Lower White River Substation, all of which had only just regained electricity following extensive restoration work.

JPS says it is "deeply disturbed that anyone would intentionally undermine the company’s restoration efforts, particularly at a time when the electricity network has suffered severe damage and crews continue to work around the clock to rebuild."

The company is urging persons to remain vigilant and to immediately report any suspicious activity, vandalism or signs of sabotage.

JPS notes that these destructive acts not only endanger lives, but also slow the restoration process.

Up to Tuesday, it had been reported that JPS had returned electricity to more than 75 per cent of customers, about 687, 339 houses and businesses.

Editor's note: This story was updated to correct the location of the affected communities to St Ann instead of St Mary.

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