Blackout in Jigawa, Yobe as truck pulls down TCN tower

A truck accident in Kano has triggered extensive power outages in several local government areas across Jigawa and Yobe states.

On August 11, 2024, a trailer carrying containers crashed into a power transmission tower in Gunduwawa Village, Gezawa Local Government Area, causing significant damage.

The collision resulted in the destruction of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) tower T16, disrupting the power supply.

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The incident, which occurred around 9:28 AM, caused the Kano–Hadejia 132kV Transmission Line to trip, cutting off approximately 16.6MW of power.

Efforts to restore the line were unsuccessful, prompting a patrol team to investigate.

They discovered that the trailer had damaged two legs of the tower, causing it to collapse.

The falling tower also struck a nearby residential building, though no casualties were reported.

The truck driver has been detained and the matter has been reported to the Gezawa Divisional Police Station.

The blackout has affected numerous local government areas, including Hadejia, Gumel, Gagarawa, Nguru, Mallammadori, Birniwa, Kafin-Hausa, Auyo, Guri, Kaugama, Taura, Garki, Maigatari, Babura, Kirikasamma, and Machina.

TCN’s Gagarawa and Hadejia substations are without power, and there is currently no alternative source for bulk power supply.

TCN has committed to quickly dismantling the damaged tower, erecting a new one, and restringing the lines to restore power to the affected areas.