Earthquake Caused 14 Billion SYP Worth of Damage to Syria’s Power Grid – Government
DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – The Syrian Minister for Electricity, Ghassan al-Zamel, said on Tuesday that initial estimates of the damage to the power grid in the earthquake-struck Syrian governorates exceeds 14 billion SYP (or around $2.1m), and that these are not final estimates.
The Ministry of Electricity stated that most of the damages to electrical networks in the governorates of Aleppo, Hama and Latakia were concentrated in low and medium-voltage networks, in contrast to the minor damage that affected high-voltage networks.
At dawn on Feb. 6, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Syria and Turkey, killing tens of thousands and injuring many more. The earthquake also caused immense destruction of buildings, trapping thousands under the rubble.
The Syrian government has declared the areas worst-affected by Feb. 6 deadly earthquakes – Latakia, Hama, Aleppo and Idlib – as ‘disaster zones’ and has promised to set up a fund for their reconstruction.
The Rastin power station in Latakia was not damaged, but some minor damage affected the transmission station in Rastin, though this will not affect its service, al-Zamel said in a statement to the pro-government al-Watan newspaper.
The minister added that repairs are ongoing in order to restore all damaged electrical infrastructure, though he did not specify when they would end.
According to the ministry, they are providing electricity to vital facilities, such as hospitals, clinics, main water pumps and bakeries. Backup generators have also been brought in to power the ongoing rescue and rubble-removal efforts.