Residents of Naro and its surrounding communities in the Nadowli-Kaleo District of the Upper West Region have been plunged into darkness for more than a week after a rainstorm destroyed about seventeen electricity poles in the community.
The prolonged power outage has disrupted economic activities and heightened security concerns among residents, particularly during the night.
The Assembly Member for the Naro Electoral Area, Kpama Haruna Mandela, confirmed the incident and described the situation as worrying. According to him, many residents are living in fear because of the darkness, while businesses that depend on electricity have been forced to shut down for over a week.
Mr. Mandela disclosed that he formally reported the incident to the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo). He said both institutions assured him that contractors would be engaged to restore electricity to the affected communities.
However, the Assembly Member expressed disappointment that despite the assurances, no contractor has yet arrived at the site to begin work on the damaged poles.
Meanwhile, the Customer Services Officer of NEDCo in the Upper West Region, Aliu Abubakari, says the company is aware of the situation and is making efforts to restore power to the community.
According to him, the rainstorm affected not only Naro but several other communities including Nadowli, Lawra and Nandom, damaging a number of high-tension electricity poles.
Mr. Abubakari explained that most of the damaged poles are high-tension poles, commonly referred to as “80 line poles,” which are critical for electricity distribution in the affected areas.
He noted that one major challenge delaying the restoration process is the unavailability of poles. He explained that NEDCo currently relies on contractors to supply and install replacement poles whenever such incidents occur.
According to him, many contractors have also run out of the required poles due to the widespread destruction caused by recent rainstorms across the region.
He, however, assured residents that efforts are ongoing to secure the needed materials and contractors to restore electricity to the affected communities as soon as possible.
