15:41, 18 August 2003

Georgia is deprived of electricity

Power supplies stopped all over Georgia on Monday at 06:00 because of a breakdown in the energy system. Even vitally important projects have no electricity.

The Tbilisi underground came to a standstill, and several dozen thousands of passengers were stranded in metro trains. Metro workers made strenuous efforts to evacuate them to the surface. Most Georgian cities are deprived of water supplies, since there is no electricity at water-pumping stations. The central TV tower in Tbilisi went dead for 20 minutes. It was put into operation only thanks to diesel generators.

There are no official reports about reasons for the breakdown in the power system. According to preliminary data, the Inguri hydropower station, the largest in the country, generating nearly half of all power in the republic, was switched off due to a breakdown this morning. This triggered off an automatic switch-off of the entire Georgian energy system.

Source: ITAR-TASS News Agency