Jalingo and Yola are facing an extended power failure after a technical glitch at a Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) facility. This disruption has left essential services, households, and commercial hubs in total darkness for three days.
For many local businesses, the outage has caused significant economic strain, forcing them to turn to expensive power alternatives. This crisis is particularly taxing as it coincides with a previously announced TCN maintenance schedule. The TCN plans to cut power across Bauchi, Gombe, Damaturu, Maiduguri, Yola, and Jalingo from July 25 to July 26, 2026, to conduct infrastructure repairs.
The Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) confirmed that the failure began on Wednesday evening when a primary circuit breaker tripped at the 132kV transmission station. This incident severed power to all 33KV feeders linked to the facility. TCN engineers are currently on-site performing repairs, though YEDC noted that the upcoming maintenance outage will still proceed as planned once this initial fault is resolved.
This situation underscores the instability of the regional power grid. Residents remain concerned about the cumulative impact of these technical faults and the impending maintenance window, which together threaten to prolong the blackout period indefinitely.
