01/08/2024 – 20:57
The heavy rain that fell in São Paulo on the afternoon of this Monday, 8th, once again caused power outages in different parts of the capital of São Paulo, according to reports from residents on social media. Enel, the concessionaire responsible for distributing electricity in the city, was charged by customers. In the report, the distributor stated that it asked teams in the field to work to normalize energy supply to affected customers.
The lack of light was noticed and reported in neighborhoods such as Saúde, Vila Mariana, Vila Clementino, Mirandópolis, Moema Campo Belo and Paraíso (all in the south zone), and also in commercial establishments in the Santana neighborhood, in the north zone of the city. One user claims that six traffic lights on the way from his house to work were not working, and another claims that the power outage happened even when the rain had not reached a high intensity.
In a report released late in the afternoon, the Fire Department reported that 200 incidents of tree falls were recorded in São Paulo and the metropolitan region during the storm. The rain accumulated 62 mm, according to Civil Defense.
“First storm of 2024 and the capital of São Paulo without electricity in the middle of the afternoon. Several residents reporting power outages: Moema, Vila Mariana, Vila Clementino, Mirandópolis”, wrote a user on X (formerly Twitter). “It barely thundered and the power went out here in Paradise”, wrote another user, on the same social network.
“Enel doesn’t fail. First storm of 2024 in SP and, bingo, the power went out in my neighborhood in Saúde and in other locations. It’s a lot of deficiency,” wrote a resident of São Paulo. “A shower of rain fell. I came to work after it stopped. On the way home from Conrad, I passed six traffic lights that were out! Arriving at Conrad, the light has already blinked three times. SP is completely abandoned by Mayor Nunes”, said another resident of the capital.
Another user highlighted that the electricity where he was was gone, even though the rain was not as strong as a “storm”. “All it took was a 30-minute rain, it wasn't a storm, it wasn't a storm, there were winds but not that strong. The power went out, as soon as it started the rain came back within seconds, after about 15 minutes it ended and never came back. How long will we go through this type of situation”, he asked.
A user also reported at 7:30 pm that in Campo Belo the rain “wasn't heavy”, but that she had been without power since 4 pm. “The rains were not heavy and since 4 pm we have been waiting for a repair on Rua Conde de Porto Alegre. In Campo Belo, São Paulo-SP”.
In some places, the power outage was caused by falling trees. The Fire Department was called, between 12:20 pm and 4:41 pm, to 187 incidents of falling trees in the capital and metropolitan region of São Paulo, according to the corporation itself. The cases, according to firefighters, were concentrated in the south of the city, in neighborhoods such as Moema, Itaim Bibi, Bela Vista, Vila Mariana, Jardim Paulista, Vila Maria and Pinheiros.
In two of these cases, the falling tree hit high voltage wires, which fell onto a car with people inside, preventing them from leaving the vehicle. One of the incidents took place in Alameda dos Aicás, in Moema, and another in Alameda Joaquim Eugênio de Lima (Jardim Paulista). According to firefighters, no one was injured.
According to the capital's Climate Emergency Management Center, flooding was recorded in different parts of the city, such as Sé (center), Itaquera (east zone), São Miguel Paulista (east zone), Santo Amaro (south zone) and Vila Mariana (south zone). ).
In a note, Enel states, based on CGE data, that the city was hit this Monday by “heavy rain followed by wind gusts of up to 76 km/h that hit part of the distributor's concession area”. The event, according to the company, caused “trees, branches and other objects to fall onto the power grid and cause interruptions in the power supply to some customers”.
According to the concessionaire, the most impacted regions were the north, east, west and the south of the capital. “The distributor has reinforced its teams in the field and is working to normalize energy supply as soon as possible to affected customers,” Enel said in the statement.
To communicate a lack of electricity, the company advises customers to prioritize digital channels, sending a free SMS to the number 27373 with the word “Light” along with the installation number shown on the energy bill; Consumers can also access the Enel São Paulo App or the website's virtual agency.
Storm two months ago left more than 2.2 million without electricity
At the beginning of November 2023, a storm left more than 2 million people without electricity in São Paulo and in cities in the capital's metropolitan region. Enel was heavily criticized because the blackout persisted for more than five days for thousands of people, which caused the loss of refrigerated food and damage to customers' appliances. Mayor Ricardo Nunes even considered canceling the City Hall's contract with the company.
A Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) was opened at the Legislative Assembly of the State of São Paulo (Alesp) to investigate the concessionaire's service provision during and after the subsequent days of heavy rain. The final report pointed out that there were irregularities committed by the distributor and suggested that the public authorities close the concession. The contract provides for the partnership to end in 2028.
The company highlighted the intensity of the weather event at the time and said it had adopted the necessary measures to restore service.
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