Meralco restores power to over 200,000 customers affected by Super Typhoon Uwan

Manila Electric Company (Meralco) said Monday the number of customers affected by power outages due to Super Typhoon Uwan has dropped to 197,000 as of 10 a.m. Monday from over 400,000 reported at midnight.

Meralco vice president and spokesperson Joe Zaldarriaga assured customers that its crews continue to work around-the-clock to safely bring back power service to areas affected by Super Typhoon Uwan in the next two to three days.

The outages were due to damaged distribution facilities, particularly poles and transformers. This was caused by strong winds and heavy rains across the service area. “The winds were quite strong in our franchise area, particularly in the southern portion,” Zaldarriaga said.

He said of those still affected, about 10,000 customers are in areas experiencing flooding. The majority of the remaining outages are concentrated in Cavite, Bulacan, Quezon and Metro Manila, with additional affected customers in Rizal, Laguna and Batangas.

“We continue to actively monitor the weather situation in light of persisting strong winds and rains brought about by the super typhoon. We ask our customers for patience and understanding as we have to prioritize safety during the conduct of power restoration activities,” Zaldarriaga said.

Among the challenges of restoration activities include debris scattered on the road, branches of trees lying on the lines, the replacement of fallen posts and the repair of affected transformers.

Zaldarriaga said the number of customers affected is low given the extent of the typhoon that hit the Philippines.

“I attribute this primarily to the strengthening of our distribution facilities, the heavy investments made by Meralco to make sure that we will be able to withstand typhoons of this nature,” he said.

He said of more than 8 million customers, 197,130 customers were affected, or roughly less than 1 percent. This means 8 million customers still have power.

He also reminded the public to verify information sources to ensure accuracy. “In these challenging times, responsible sharing matters. Spreading unverified information only adds to fear and confusion during these situations,” he said.