284 PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN PANAY ISLAND SUSPEND CLASSES DUE TO BLACKOUT

TWO-HUNDRED-EIGHTY-FOUR public schools in Panay Island on Wednesday suspended face-to-face (F2F) classes due to a power outage affecting the island since Tuesday afternoon.

Department of Education (DepEd) Western Visayas information officer Hernani Escullar Jr. said the move was to protect the health of the learners and their personnel.

He said school heads are in constant coordination with their respective schools division offices (SDOs) in ensuring learning continuity despite this unforeseen situation.

According to a data from the Department of Education in Western Visayas, among those that suspend classes are  all levels in Iloilo City and the towns of Sigma and President Roxas in Capiz; Kalibo and Numancia in Aklan; Estancia, Pavia, Leon, Calinog, and Balasan in Iloilo province .

The suspension was based on the declaration of their respective mayors.

The school head of the Leonora S. Salapantan National High School in San Miguel, Iloilo, also suspended their classes.

Escullar said the schools could have home tasks to ensure learning continuity, provided there is proper coordination with their school heads and SDOs, especially since some learners are just returning from their holiday break.

Meanwhile, the Iloilo Economic Development Foundation, Inc. (ILEDF) expressed its deep concern over the unfortunate power outage that occurred at the outset of the resumption of work on January 2.

“This unforeseen event has undoubtedly posed challenges to our local businesses, industries, and the overall economic activity within our community. The power blackout has, regrettably, disrupted normal operations for numerous businesses, hindering productivity and causing inconvenience to our residents. We understand the gravity of the situation and empathize with those who have been directly affected by the outage,” ILEDF said in a statement released on Wednesday.

The 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 of the problem, implement corrective actions promptly, and prioritize the improvement of infrastructure in the region to prevent similar incidents from disrupting economic activities.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry Iloilo City chapter, in a letter to Mayor Jerry P. Treñas, raised its concern about the effect of frequent outages on businesses and residents and proposed a collaborative approach to address the concerns effectively.

The NGCP, in a press statement, said the 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 the primary cause of the power interruption. We emphasize the need for improved planning to ensure sufficient generation per island, with a well-balanced mix of fuels and technology,” the NGCP said.

According to NGCP, generating units 1 and 2 of the Panay Energy Development Corporation (PEDC), each with a capacity of 83 megawatts (MW), and the 135-MW Palm Concepcion Power Corporation (PCPC) tripped on January 2, while PEDC’s unit 3, with a generating capacity of 150 MW, was on planned maintenance shutdown.