Power disruption at WEB plant causes blackout in Aruba Thursday afternoon

ORANJESTAD — Aruba experienced a widespread power outage on Thursday, November 5, shortly after 2:00 p.m., leaving the island without electricity for approximately one to one and a half hours. According to electricity distribution company ELMAR, the blackout resulted from an interruption in the power supply from the WEB power plant. At 2:09 p.m., ELMAR spokesperson Audrey Croes confirmed that the blackout was linked to the interruption at WEB. Two minutes later, ELMAR announced that its technicians had been dispatched to various substations, preparing to restore electricity as soon as WEB resumed supplying power.

MORE THAN AN HOUR WITHOUT ELECTRICITY

At 3:02 p.m., ELMAR confirmed that the situation remained unchanged. Technicians were ready to begin restoration, but the company was still waiting for WEB to resume electricity supply. Four minutes later, at 3:06 p.m., ELMAR announced that WEB had begun supplying electricity again. Technicians immediately started the restoration process, beginning in the Kooyman area.

POWER GRADUALLY RESTORED

By 3:17 p.m., ELMAR reported that three substations were back in operation, restoring electricity to Balashi, Santa Cruz and surrounding neighborhoods. At that time, technicians were continuing their efforts to restore power to other parts of Aruba. ELMAR's information confirms that the outage originated from an interruption in WEB's electricity supply, but no technical explanation has yet been provided regarding the exact cause of the problem at the power plant. Furthermore, ELMAR's latest update at 3:17 p.m. did not confirm that electricity had been fully restored throughout Aruba.