A major power failure hit Malta and the neighboring island of Gozo, leaving residents of 30 towns without electricity, infohub.kz reports.
According to Bild, Maltese residents faced the problem yesterday afternoon. Local operator Enemalta said the outage was caused by a sudden shutdown of equipment at a liquefied natural gas facility. To maintain stability of the entire power system, electricity had to be temporarily cut off in several areas.
It is noted that residents and tourists reported widespread power disruptions. They complained that air conditioners stopped working in homes and hotels, and televisions went off in beach bars.
Backup power sources were soon launched to restore supply. In some towns, electricity returned after about an hour. Enemalta is still investigating the cause of the failure at the power generation facility.
It is known that this is not the first serious blackout for Malta in recent weeks. In late August, the island of Gozo was left without electricity for 26 hours due to problems with several high-voltage lines. Authorities promised compensation to those affected.
Overall, this summer power outages on the islands have been occurring more often than usual. Amid rising consumption during the tourist season, Malta is already discussing whether the power system can handle the load.