A major transmission tower collapse on the 132-kilovolt Rantambe–Mahiyanganaya line caused the most severe damage to Sri Lanka’s electricity grid during Cyclone Ditwah, cutting power to large parts of the Eastern Province, officials said Friday.
The failure of the tower, along with extensive damage to connected power lines, left Mahiyanganaya and wide areas of the Batticaloa and Ampara districts without electricity.
The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) moved quickly to install a temporary 33-kilovolt connection to keep essential services running, including hospitals and water pumping stations.
Limited power was also supplied to selected communities on a rotational basis.
Restoring the transmission network became an urgent priority, with crews racing to erect temporary towers and repair damaged lines under difficult weather and terrain conditions.
The Minister of Energy visited the affected sites this week to oversee progress, offer technical direction and support workers laboring in what authorities described as extremely challenging circumstances.
Officials expect normal transmission capacity to be restored by tomorrow (07), allowing full resumption of electricity supply to the affected regions.
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