Electricians die in winter chaos
2008-02-05 10:23
Chenzhou, China - Cold, exhausted residents stood in long lines for water and gasoline, as the central Chinese city of Chenzhou entered the twelfth day of a blackout sparked by the worst winter storms in more than half a century.
Families shopped for chickens for their Lunar New Year holiday feasts and traffic was moving on city streets, lending it an air of normalcy during daylight hours.
However, the city remained almost entirely without power and prices of food, candles, and charcoal briquettes used for heating and cooking had shot up due to shortages, residents said.
"It is extremely cold and inconvenient. I haven't had a shower for about 10 days," said a Chenzhou travel agent who gave only her surname, Hong.
The Hunan province city lies in the centre of a region roughly the size of Western Europe that has been pummelled by freak blizzards and ice storms beginning on January 10.
With the weather improving, about 130 000 repair workers have fanned out to restore power ahead of Thursday's start to the holiday, although officials in Beijing said the job remained daunting.
Traffic snarls continued to ease as highways were cleared of ice and train service was restored, allowing tens of millions of migrant workers to complete holiday journeys home for the only chance many have to see their families all year.
Repairs to power lines appeared to be slow getting off the ground in Chenzhou, a transit hub with an urban population of more than one million and another three million in the surrounding countryside.
Banks, gas stations closed
Travel agent Hong said most of the banks had closed and cash was running short in the city.
"There is no heat. We take turns to use water," Hong said.
Many gas stations had closed because electric pumps were not working, leading to long lines at the few still open. Frozen water pipes had burst and pumping stations were shutdown, forcing residents to fill buckets from military trucks.
The official Xinhua News Agency said 11 electricians had died in the struggle to restore power, but gave no details. It wasn't clear if they were included in the official death toll of 60 people killed in accidents and building collapses blamed on the storms.
Chief Engineer Gu Junyuan of the State Electricity Regulatory Commission said on Tuesday that power was temporarily restored to some parts of Chenzhou on Monday evening, but failed again after just three hours.
Workers would be hard pressed to restore power across the region by the start of the holiday on Thursday, he said.
"Since time is running out, our task is still an arduous one," Gu told reporters at a news conference in Beijing.
Gu said that China's grid met international standards on storm resistance, but that ice that formed on power lines was up to six times thicker than the cables had been designed to withstand. Officials had decided against reinforcing them due to the cost, he said.
Electrical workers, generator trucks brought in
"I believe that by doing so, we would use more resources and it will lead to higher electricity costs," Gu said.
Electrical workers from other regions had been brought in as reinforcements, and about 150 generator trucks were providing temporary power supplies, according to a statement from the SERC.
The usually temperate region is not used to harsh winter weather and woefully unprepared to clear ice and snow. Power cables snapped and pylons collapsed under the weight, while supplies of coal which China uses to generate 70% of its electricity, dwindled amid transport bottlenecks.
The loss of power brought electric trains to a standstill, stranding more than five million holiday travellers.
Official estimates have put losses to agriculture and the economy at 53.8 billion yuan.
In Guizhou province, one of China's poorest regions, 50% of power had been knocked out, the State Electricity Regulatory Commission said.
By Tuesday, power had been restored to 27 of the 50 cities and counties affected, the commission said. Nationwide, power was flowing again along 130 of 170 transmission cables affected, it said.
The commission said stockpiles of coal at regional power plants had begun to rise again and emergency crews brought in from other parts of the country were helping speed along the process of restoring the grid.
In Hunan, the power supply remained at just 53% of pre-crisis levels, the commission said.
- AP