Prolonged Power Outage Forces Suspension of Classes in Panay; Calls for Infrastructure Improvement and Collaborative Solutions

 ILOILO CITY – On Wednesday, a total of 284 public schools in Panay suspended face-to-face (F2F) classes due to a prolonged power outage that affected the island for over 24 hours starting Tuesday afternoon.

Hernani Escullar Jr., the information officer of the Department of Education (DepEd) in Western Visayas, emphasized the commitment to follow the guidance of local chief executives (LCEs) to safeguard the health and well-being of learners and personnel. School heads are in continuous coordination with their respective schools division offices (SDOs) to ensure learning continuity despite the unforeseen situation.

Classes at all levels were suspended in Iloilo City and the towns of Sigma and President Roxas in Capiz; Kalibo and Numancia in Aklan; and Estancia, Pavia, Leon, Calinog, and Balasan in Iloilo province. The school head of Leonora S. Salapantan National High School in San Miguel, Iloilo, also suspended their classes.

Escullar mentioned that schools may have home tasks to ensure learning continuity, provided there is proper coordination with school heads and SDOs, especially since some learners have just returned from their holiday break.

Meanwhile, the Iloilo Economic Development Foundation, Inc. (ILEDF) expressed deep concern over the power outage that occurred at the beginning of the work resumption on January 2. ILEDF urged the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to conduct a thorough investigation into the root cause, implement corrective actions promptly, and prioritize infrastructure improvement to prevent similar incidents.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry Iloilo City chapter also raised concerns in a letter addressed to Mayor Jerry P. Treñas, emphasizing the impact of frequent outages on businesses and residents and proposing a collaborative approach to address the concerns effectively.

NGCP, in a press statement, explained that multiple plant tripping on January 2 isolated the Panay grid from the rest of the Visayas grid. The unscheduled maintenance shutdowns of the largest power plants in Panay Island were identified as the primary cause, emphasizing the need for improved planning to ensure sufficient generation per island.

With the tripping of three major power generating units and the planned maintenance shutdown of another, 68.75 percent of the total in-island generation was lost to the Panay sub-grid, according to NGCP. The transmission operator reiterated the need for a "whole-of-industry approach, including better energy resource planning." (PNA)