Residents and businesses across several parts of Enugu were plunged into darkness on Friday evening after an explosion damaged equipment at the Gariki Injection Substation, disrupting electricity supply to customers served by the Army and Gariki 11kV feeders.
The outage followed an explosion that occurred at about 7:30 p.m. on July 17, 2026, affecting the indoor 11kV breaker at the Gariki Injection Substation, according to MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited (MEDL).
In a statement issued on Friday by the company’s Head of Communications, Emeka Ezeh, MEDL said its engineers had already begun assessing the extent of the damage while restoration efforts were underway.
“MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited (MEDL) wishes to inform its esteemed customers served by the Army and Gariki 11kV feeders that the ongoing power outage is due to an explosion at the Gariki Injection Substation,” the statement read.
The company disclosed that the outage affected customers connected to the Army 11kV feeder, including Army Barracks, One Day Road, Meniru and Upper Meniru, as well as Joe Continental.
Areas served by the Gariki 11kV feeder were also impacted, including Gariki Market, Mayor Market, Roban Stores (Agbani Road), Crunchies (Agbani Road), Mobile Police Barracks, Amechi Road, Upper Mount, Ikiriki, Emeka Ebila, Ozalla Street, Egbonnaji, Nnaji Ogbodo, Idaw River, Igbariam Street, Liberation, Mount, Umuchu, Achina, Vance, Unubi, Enugu Agidi, Amawbia, Amokwe, Kenneth, Amah and Hill Crest.
MEDL assured customers that technical teams were working to restore electricity supply as quickly as possible.
“Our technical team is currently carrying out a comprehensive assessment of the damage and has commenced the necessary restoration efforts to ensure power supply is restored to the affected areas as quickly as possible,” Ezeh stated.
The distribution company apologised for the disruption and appealed to affected customers for understanding.
“MEDL sincerely regrets the inconvenience this incident has caused our esteemed customers and appeal for patience and cooperation as it works to restore electricity supply,” the statement added.
