Today, a massive power outage occurred in the capital of Kyrgyzstan and several regions of the country. Due to the power cuts, the supply of drinking water in Bishkek also temporarily stopped. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
According to the Ministry of Energy of the Kyrgyz Republic, a technological failure occurred on the 220 kV high-voltage lines "Kara-Balta — Glavnaya" and "Glavnaya — Shu." As a result, the automatic load shedding system was activated.
The accident affected most districts of Bishkek, as well as the Chuy, Naryn, Talas, and Osh regions. However, the Issyk-Kul region and the city of Osh were not affected by the blackout.
The Bishkek City Hall reported that due to the lack of electricity, city water intakes temporarily stopped working. Pumping stations are being started manually as power is restored.
Towards evening, power engineers of the National Electric Network of Kyrgyzstan (NENK) began to gradually restore electricity supply. Despite repeated outages recorded in some areas of the capital, the situation is now stabilizing. The exact causes of the accident on the power lines are being investigated.
The blackout left many institutions and homes in Bishkek without power. Residents complained on social media about the lack of electricity. The interruption of water supply caused additional inconvenience. However, thanks to the prompt actions of power engineers, the situation is gradually improving.
The Ministry of Energy of the Kyrgyz Republic has set up a special commission to investigate the causes of the accident. The commission is expected to present its findings in the coming days. This incident once again highlighted the vulnerability of Kyrgyzstan's energy infrastructure.