Unidentified men bombed two steel power pylons Thursday night in the area of Marawi City, throwing several regions of Mindanao into darkness.
Authorities said the bomb exploded on two of its power pylons in Barangay Patani at 9.20pm – the pylons are part of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.
The explosion was precisely set and has isolated power plants Agus 1 and Agus 2 – serving a total of 80 megawatts and 180 megawatts, respectively.
“The destruction of steel power pylons isolated the two power plants from the grid, causing power loss in several areas in the Mindanao grid,” officials said.
So far no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, though similar power pylon attacks in central and southern Mindanao has been the work of New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas.
Authorities believe the attack may have been related to the disputed ‘right of way’ issues associated with the power lines.
Some land owners intentionally planted trees under the power lines year ago, causing a power outage in Lanao area.
The incident has put the entire city of Marawi in the dark while police and military forces attempt to determine who is responsible for the powerline bombing.
Like Us on Facebook