NAIROBI, May 26 — A nationwide power outage hit the country on Sunday as a result of a transmission fault from the hydro-electric plants and sparking panic.
The black-out started at 5:45 pm and affected operations in major hospitals, including the Kenyatta National Hospital and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Power began to be restored in phases after three hours.
"A transmission system fault at Kamburu power station led to a shutdown of all power generators, resulting in power failure in many parts of the country," government spokesman Alfred Mutua said in a statement.
The hydro-electric plants’ owners, official power generator KenGen, produces about 80 percent of electricity consumed in the country, using hydro, geothermal, thermal and wind resources.
Millions of Kenyans suffered power-rationing blackouts in 2000 and 2001 after water levels at hydro-electric dams reached critically low levels.
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