Alhamdulillah, PLN Restores 99 Percent Of Electricity From Customers In Jakarta Affected By Floods

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - PLN has succeeded in restarting 99 percent of customers affected by flooding in DKI Jakarta and its surroundings. As of this afternoon, a total of 492 substations affected by the flood have been lit and more than 145 thousand customers have now received PLN electricity back.

General Manager of PLN's Jakarta Raya Distribution Main Unit, Doddy B. Pangaribuan, said that before the restoration is carried out, PLN will first ensure the safety and security of the people affected by the Jakarta floods last weekend.

"Alhamdulillah, from last night to this morning, the progress is extraordinary because the floods have also started to recede. Once the customer area is not flooded, we have checked and cleaned the substation, and we have received direct approval to turn it on," he said in a written statement received by VOI, Monday, February 22nd.

Before turning on the electricity, said Doddy, PLN needs to ensure that substations, networks, and customer installations are safe. PLN conducts inspections, cleaning, drying, and checks distribution substations that are affected by the flood.

PLN will restore electricity in locations affected by floods if all electricity networks both on the side of the residents and PLN are dry and ready for electricity, and both parties, namely PLN and Community Leaders, sign an official report on the electricity.

As is known, due to heavy rains that flushed Jakarta and its surroundings from Friday to Saturday, February 20, several locations were still inundated by floods. A total of 500 substations were affected by the flood and for the safety of the residents, the electricity supply for 146 thousand customers was disabled.

"The total number of PLN UID Jakarta Raya customers reaches 4.7 million. And currently, the electricity is still disabled, it is less than 1 percent. Even so, our officers are still on alert," he explained.

The areas currently affected are parts of Kemang, LIPI offices, Warung Buncit, Kalimalang, and surrounding areas.

Entering the rainy season and extreme weather, PLN has alerted 38 rubber boats to help protect electricity during floods. In addition, PLN also has 2,371 personnel spread across 34 posts, 10 generator sets, 41 UPS units, 23 mobile substations, 7 mobile cable units, 15 mobile transformer units, and 7 detection and operational vehicles in DKI Jakarta and its surroundings.

"We are still on alert, because the information from BMKG, the potential for heavy rain can still occur. However, we hope that everything will remain safe, and floods will not occur," he said.

PLN also urges the public to always be aware of the dangers of electricity during the rainy season and floods. If water starts to enter the house, residents can independently turn off the electricity from the Mini Circuit Breaker (MCB) at the kWh meter. Furthermore, residents can contact PLN through the PLN Mobile application.

"PLN also invites customers to do meter recording independently through the PLN Mobile application. Customers only need to upload a photo of the electricity meter on the 24-27 of each month. Then, on the 1st of the following month, a bill will be issued based on the meter number reported," he said.

Doddy said the SwaCAM feature makes recording electricity meters more practical because there is no need to wait for officers to come to the house every month. The existence of SwaCAM makes the electricity billing process more transparent because the customer himself provides the electricity consumption report.

In addition to restoring electricity, PLN Peduli has also provided assistance for flood victims in DKI Jakarta and its surroundings in the form of basic necessities, cleaning tools, and masks with a total value of IDR 51 million.