More than half of Kenya has been in the dark since yesterday afternoon, when a nationwide blackout attributed to the bad weather that has been raging for weeks disrupted supply in Nairobi, Mombasa, and major towns across the country, including Malindi and Watamu.
The electricity company, Kenya Power & Lightning, issued a statement around 5.40pm, saying that 'heavy rain and wind' had caused damage to the country's main supply line and that within two hours the situation would be restored. Which in fact did not happen.
Around midnight, parts of Mombasa and the capital had electricity, but a large part of the country was also in blackout when it woke up.
This is the second major national blackout, following the one on 25 August 2023, which was described as the longest in Kenya's history and had also caused disruption at Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. This time the generators at the Kenyan airport worked, although some sectors experienced outages. Just as there were problems at the port of Mombasa. For everyone else, only those with generators, inverters or solar panels saved (and rescued food, perishables and candles). Today, more than ever, these are indispensable for not having any problems in this country, especially for those with assets.
As always, we will update you on the situation from the portal of Italians in Kenya.