The damaged 33kV underground cables as a result of the attempted cable theft.
KUCHING: The power outage that affected parts of Petra Jaya last Friday was due to severely damaged cables caused by an attempted cable theft, according to Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB).
In a media statement here yesterday, SEB said a probe carried out by its operations arm, Syarikat Sesco Berhad (Sesco), found two 33kV underground cables from Matang to the Astana 33kV substation had been cut near the construction site of the Datuk Temenggong Abang Kipali roundabout.
“This resulted in the outage on Feb 16 at around 10pm, affecting supply to Astana and the surrounding areas, Semariang and parts of Santubong,” said the statement.
Sesco’s technical team managed to restore supply to all affected areas in less than 20 minutes via other 33kV substations, it added.
“Fault locating and repair works were immediately arranged, and it took almost 15 hours to complete due to the extensive damage.
“At the site, hand gloves, a bag and other belongings of the thieves were found, believed to have been used in the attempt to steal the cables,” it revealed.
A report has been lodged with the police to launch an investigation into the attempted cable theft.
Sesco chief executive officer Lau Kim Swee said the latest incident was another attempt of cable theft which ‘shows that the thieves are getting bolder every day’.
More than 500 cases of cable (copper) theft targeting Sesco’s facilities, with losses of nearly RM7 million, had been registered since 2015, he said.
On the most recent case, he said the site is near to a major construction area where the thieves must have thought that the cables had been de-energised or were inactive.
“Stealing cables is very dangerous. In addition to causing serious injury or fatality due to electrocution, it also causes inconvenience to the community living in the surrounding area due to outage.
“There are also situations where damaged cables cause voltage instability, damaging customers’ electrical appliances,” pointed out Lau.
He therefore sought continuous assistance and cooperation from the general public to give Sesco information on suspicious activities near electrical facilities.
“Quick actions from all quarters will minimise inconvenience and help to curb this dangerous crime. On our part, we will continue to work closely with the police, increase our site patrols and harden the targets such as reinforcing security measures at our substations and facilities,” he said.
Individuals can contact SEB’s Customer Care Centre at 1300-88-3111 which operates 24 hours daily. They can also alert the nearest police station for action.
Reports can also be made via the ‘SEB cares’ mobile app.