It was already a unusual tuesdayfor labor reintegration after the long holiday for Constitution Day, when chaos took over the city. Thousands of users of the Metro and of Cable car from Santo Domingo were stranded due to the general blackout that affected the Dominican Republic yesterday.
Initially, it was thought that the power outagewhich occurred at 1:23 in the afternoonwas ephemeral and focused. However, as the first minutes passed, reports flooded social networks about stuck people in it Metrowhile others were stranded at their stations.
In the midst of the confusion, the authorities intervened for rescue those held captive in the tunnels and elevated Metrowhere those affected improvised fans to combat the stifling afternoon heat.
To get an idea of the magnitude of the chaos, it is worth mentioning that last August, the Office for the Reorganization of Transportation (Opret) reported that only the Metro mobilized 17,000 people per hour.
He electrical cut It affected so much those who went to their jobs in the afternoon shift as those who left for their homes.
“A chaos in the capital without explanation,” he said. Yeseniaa user who came to the Freddy Beras Goico stationon Lope de Vega Avenue, at 3:00 in the afternoon and still at 6:00, it was still grounding over there.
In the end, hundreds of users had to search alternative transportationlike the flying babies from whose doors many were hanging. They also resorted to motoconchos. Others, however, had no choice but to return on foot, as seen in a video, where dozens of people walked across the Jacinto Peynado Bridgewhich connects the National District with the sectors of Santo Domingo Norte.
Reactivation at night
After the agony, after 8:20 at night, the Opret reported the complete reactivation of the service on Line 1 of the Metro; on Line 2, it was replaced from the María Montez station to the Eduardo Brito station. He cable car entered full service.
However, the section of Metro included between the extension of Line 2 and the stations Ercilia Pepín and Bona Conceptionremained out of service last night.
At that time, close to nine, some traffic lights of the capital They operated normally, while the lamps on the main avenues remained off.
Meanwhile, the blackout became the fuel of the day for the opposition politicians that They attacked the Government from social networks.
Amend the damage
Aware of the seriousness of the damage, Joel Santos, energy minister and Minas, apologized to the population and announced that, to compensate for what happened, the free service of the Metro and the Cable car and they extended their operation until 12:00 at night. Similarly, the Metropolitan Bus Services Operator (OMSA) also offered free transportation to passengers.
While passersby juggled to return to their residences, at the Energy Control Center of the Dominican Electric Transmission Company (ETED) they verified on a screen how the service was being restored. When asked about the possible causes, the Minister of Energy and Mines, Joel Santos, said that they could not speak clearly that it was sabotage, since the causes of the blackout will be determined in the investigation entrusted to the corresponding authorities.
In a press conference he insisted on saying that the priority was to normalize the situation and that the investigations will come later.
“We are empowering the corresponding authorities to conduct an investigation,” he said.
He described the energy system as “complex”, so he let it be known that the expertise will take time.
