The management of the Northern Electricity Distribution Company of the Volta River Authority (VRA/NEDCo) in the Upper East Region says it is diligently working to resolve the power supply challenges in some parts of the Garu district.
Communities such as Akora, Woriyanga, Yakoti, and Kpikpira have experienced prolonged power outages after a severe rainstorm damaged approximately 31 electric poles in the district.
Residents have demanded an immediate solution to this problem as they say it adversely affects their livelihoods.
Consequently, the VRA/NEDCo Area Engineer, Ishmael Ben Kwofie, has assured residents that despite the extensive damage caused by the rainstorm to their network, their team is working effortlessly to restore power supply to the affected communities.
“The extent of damage caused by the rainstorm was quite substantial, making it challenging to acquire the necessary materials for power restoration. It took several days before we could address the situation, but there are contractors currently on-site attending to the matter. Numerous communities were affected, including Akara, with 11 damaged high-tension poles, Woriyanga, with 9 poles, Yakoti with 7 poles, and Kpikpira, with 4 poles. Additionally, several low-voltage poles were also damaged. Our priority is to restore the high-tension poles, followed by the low-voltage poles,” he explained on Citi News.
According to him, out of the approximately 613 damaged high-tension poles, 23 have already been restored by the team, and they have dispatched steel poles to repair the remaining 9 damaged ones.
Mr Kwofie appealed to the affected communities for patience while VRA/NEDCo works diligently to restore the power supply, assuring them that the company will continue exploring innovative ways to reduce such failures in the future.
He also expressed concern over the impact of the ongoing Bawku ethnic crisis on the company’s operations in the area.
“We currently face a breakdown in Bawku, and despite contacting several contractors, none of them is willing to collect materials from our yard and commence work. This is a significant problem that has already affected our operations. However, we are actively working to mitigate this issue and hope that it does not prolong,” he lamented.