Karachi: A massive electricity breakdown early on Friday caused a power paralysis in Karachi as the dilapidated national transmission caved amid light monsoon showers.

The problem started at around 7.30am when a transmission line connecting private sector power distribution monopoly K-Electric with the national transmission grids collapsed.

The failure of the 500 KV transmission line entailed the breakdown of another 220 KV transmission line known as NKI, which wreaked havoc on the K-Electric or KE generation, transmission and distribution network.

The transmission lines that broke down supplied 650 megawatts of electricity to KE out of its total supply of 2,700 to 2,900 megawatt that it was producing and buying from other independent power generators.

“An abrupt outage of 650 megawatt from our system caused [a] complete shutdown of our power generating units as well as those which were supplying electricity to us,” A KE spokesman told Gulf News.

Apart from KE, Gul Ahmad and Tapal Power projects were also supplying electricity to the city’s transmission and distribution network.

The power outage disrupted the lives of people on the Jummatul Widah (special last Friday prayers) of Ramadan and the electricity failure resulted in acute water shortage in every household.

“We cannot boost water to our overhead tanks through electric motors and we had to fetch water from underground water tanks for ablution,” said Abdul Samad, a 70-year retired professor of Islamic studies who lives in PECHS, a middle class neighbourhood.

“I wanted to take bath as it is a Sunnah [the way of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH)] on Friday but I was disappointed as we did not have sufficient water,” he said.

The KE claimed that its technical teams energised all its 62 grid stations and electricity was restored in about 30 per cent of the city by late afternoon and their staff was working for complete restoration.

“We are working hard to restore electricity in the entire city as soon as possible,” the spokesman said but refrained from giving any timeframe.

Karachi is the only port city and is the industrial hub of the country. Closure of economic activities in the city costs billions of rupees of losses a day, business leaders say.