Power grid safety loss in Yen Thanh

(Baonghean) - Although it has been handed over to the electricity industry for management, it has not been upgraded and has been in use for a long time. Currently, the power grid system in many localities of Yen Thanh district is seriously degraded, posing a potential risk of grid insecurity, especially when the rainy and stormy season is approaching.

Poor power infrastructure

For more than a year now, the family of Mr. Nguyen Ich Tai, Hamlet 4, Vien Thanh Commune (Yen Thanh) has been living in constant fear because the electric pole on Road 4, near his house, has been broken for a long time. Mr. Tai was upset: The electric pole broke, the electric wire fell down, crushing the roof of my house and many other houses. People have been using meter poles to support it for more than a year now, but the Electricity Department has not repaired or replaced it. The rainy and stormy season is coming, it is very dangerous.

The fishbone power line runs along the inter-hamlet road through Vien Thanh commune.

Many electric poles are damaged, degraded, and broken, leaving exposed iron, very dangerous in Tien Thanh commune.

In particular, the Vien Thanh 1 transformer station, with a capacity of 320 KV in Hamlet 5, always has many potential risks of grid insecurity. Mr. Vu Xuan Hong - Hamlet 5 Chief, Vien Thanh Commune expressed: The transformer station is located next to the hamlet cultural house, with a temporary protective fence. Every day, especially in the afternoons, people gather here for sports activities, and there have been many cases of electrocution of buffaloes, cows and people. The people's wish is that the Electricity sector and authorities at all levels have a solution to move the station to another location that is safe for people.

Mr. Nguyen Phuc Khiem - Vice Chairman of Vien Thanh Commune People's Committee said: Vien Thanh has handed over the power grid system to Yen Thanh Electricity Branch for management, but only some lines have been repaired and replaced with coated wires, the rest are still bare wires, the power pole system is seriously degraded and has not been repaired or upgraded.

Implementing the movement to build new rural areas, people voluntarily donated land to expand rural roads, but in the area there are still 100 electric poles standing in the middle of the road. In addition, the power line through the planned land that was auctioned to the people has the poles and wires too low, making it impossible for people to build houses. Many households have finished building the foundation, but because the power line has not been relocated, they have to leave it unfinished and wait.

Not only in Vien Thanh commune, but many other localities in Yen Thanh district share the same situation of degraded power lines. Mr. Nguyen Van Khanh - Hamlet 4, Tien Thanh commune said: I have been working as a motorbike repairman for decades, but the electricity here is not always stable, causing unsafety for villagers, buffaloes, and cows. My fishbone power line is more than 300m long and uses wooden poles and bare wires, so every time there is a storm, I have to ask the electricity committee to cut off the power and do not dare to use it. When it is time to cook rice, the electricity is too weak to plug in the rice cooker.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Dai - Chairman of Tien Thanh Commune People's Committee said: Tien Thanh Commune has a long power line, while there are only 2 transformer stations of 250 KV/station, used for over 20 years and 1 hanging station. Currently, 7/10 hamlets, equivalent to 80% of households lack stable power source, concentrated in Cau Mang, Nhan Tien, Dong Tron, Yen Vien, Bac Tien, Roc Lua hamlets.

The commune has handed over to the Electricity Department since the end of 2014, but the Electricity Department has not invested in upgrading the system synchronously, so it is now seriously degraded and there is not enough electricity for daily life. Even during peak hours, people have to light candles, and those who can afford it buy rechargeable bulbs and generators to use. The commune has reported and submitted many times to the district and the Electricity Department, but so far, they have not received any attention.

Underinvestment

According to incomplete statistics, currently, Yen Thanh district has about 2,000 seriously damaged electric poles that need to be replaced, not to mention the system of bare, beam, and porcelain wires that have been used for too long and are now degraded, with loose wires and broken connections in many places, so the power source is not guaranteed for people's daily life and production.

The fishbone power line running along the inter-hamlet road through hamlet 6, the primary school and the secondary school is increasingly degraded, the exposed wire system is sagging and very dangerous.

Mr. Ho Sy Vinh - Director of Yen Thanh Electricity Branch said: The current electricity situation is not guaranteed, many places people complain because the reason is that the rural low voltage grid is mostly degraded and very poor. Although the Electricity industry has invested a lot to renovate, upgrade and install new transformer stations, it still cannot meet the needs of the people. The hot weather has lasted for a long time, so the load has increased, and people use a lot of electrical equipment. To improve the rural electricity grid, since receiving it, the Electricity industry has also taken advantage of investment projects of over 200 billion VND to install stations, upgrade from ground stations to hanging stations, and replace power lines.

They have put in the effort and made use of materials to build some field stations. In the first 6 months of this year alone, Yen Thanh Electricity has spent nearly 500 million VND to replace 5,000 - 6,000 m of electric wires for the people, but the quality of electricity has not yet met the people's needs. Currently, the Electricity is also implementing anti-overload packages to meet the people's electricity needs. For electric poles in the middle of the road, there needs to be close coordination between the locality and the Electricity, the communes are responsible for the relocation costs, the Electricity is responsible for collecting the wires, pulling the wires to cut the power, and restoring power to the people.

The low-voltage rural power grid system in the district currently has three problems that make people upset and worried: planning of power lines after traffic clearance, seriously degraded power infrastructure and weak power sources in localities that greatly affect production and people's lives. People expect relevant levels and sectors to have specific and practical solutions to help people feel secure when using electricity, avoiding unfortunate risks that may occur when the rainy and stormy season is approaching.

Anh Tuan - Phan Hien