Indonesia power blackout hits tens of millions on Java island

The shutdown plunged buildings in the sprawling capital Jakarta – home to some 30 million people – into darkness

State utility company PLN said the blackout was caused when a gas turbine at a major power plant went down, coupled with disruption at another facility

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A police officer directs traffic in Jakarta on Sunday after a power blackout. Photo: EPA

Published: 7:51pm, 4 Aug 2019Updated: 7:50pm, 4 Aug 2019

Tens of millions of people on Indonesia’s heavily populated Java island were affected by a widespread electricity outage on Sunday after state utility company PLN reported disruptions at several power plants.

The shutdown plunged buildings in the sprawling capital Jakarta – home to some 30 million people – into darkness and forced the temporary closure of its new mass rapid transit system.

Passengers wait outside an MRT station in Jakarta on Sunday. Photo: EPA

Passengers were safely evacuated from several MRT carriages when the power went out, according to the system’s operator, while commuter trains were also affected.

Jakarta’s hospitals and Soekarno-Hatta International Airport were not affected because they have backup power generators, officials said.

“For people with sick relatives, all hospitals in Jakarta have power generators and are operating normally,” the city’s governor Anies Baswedan said on social media.