Meralco: 5-hour brownouts in some franchise areas

(Updated 9:20 a.m.) Some franchise areas of the Manila Electric Co. may have to endure rotating brownouts of as long as five hours Friday, the power distribution company said.

Meralco spokesman Joe Zaldarriaga said this was due to the low power supply especially due to problems with some plants in the north.

"Mga five hours ito. Kung kapusin nang kaunti, lima hanggang anim na oras, rotating ito," he said in an interview on dzBB radio.

Among the areas expected to be affected are parts of Manila, Quezon City, Bulacan, Cavite, Las Piñas, Batangas and Laguna.

Zaldarriaga said they are still trying to balance the load in their franchise areas. Meralco's franchise areas include Metro Manila and nearby provinces such as Bulacan and Cavite.

Citing information reaching him, Zaldarriaga said Meralco is getting power from plants in the south but some plants in the north may be having problems.

"Unti-unting pumapasok ang planta galing south, sa north may nag-trip na planta," he said.

Zaldarriaga could not give a timetable on when the brownouts will end, citing the power supply situation.

However, he said Meralco remains committed to restoring power to most of Metro Manila by 10 p.m.

Power restored to 73% franchise areas

Power has been restored to more than 70 percent of Meralco's franchise areas that were affected by Typhoon Glenda (Rammasun) as of Friday morning.

In a post on its Twitter account, Meralco said 73 percent of its franchise areas have power as of 6 a.m.

"UPDATE: As of 6 a.m. (July 18), about 73% of Meralco franchise area has power," it said.

Residents in areas still without power may contact Meralco's hotline at 16211, it added.

Other contact details (via SMS) Meralco customers may use include:

— Joel Locsin /LBG, GMA News