Power restored in 4 Habiganj upazilas after 15-hour blackout; 1 still without electricity

A fire caused by a mechanical fault at the Shahjibazar power substation plunged the entire Habiganj district into darkness for nearly 15 hours. After overnight repair efforts, partial electricity supply has been restored to four upazilas.

The fire broke out suddenly around 7:15pm on Thursday (July 31) shortly after rain began in the area, caused widespread disruption, triggering a water crisis that forced residents to use ponds for bathing and household chores. Public transport was also affected as easy-bike drivers couldn't charge their vehicles, leading to reduced city movement Friday morning.

The blaze severely damaged two power transformers completely and partially damaged another, leading to a total power outage in five of the nine upazilas under the jurisdiction of the Palli Bidyut Samity.

"The fire caused major damage to critical equipment," said Manjur Morshed, Executive Engineer at Habiganj PDB. "Four fire service units from Madhabpur and Shayestaganj rushed to the scene and brought the fire under control after nearly 30 minutes of effort."

Madhabpur Fire Service Station Officer Rakib Uddin Bhuiyan said, "Despite emergency overnight repairs, power was only partially restored to some areas including Chunarughat, Shayestaganj, and Lakhai upazilas by 3:00am. Additionally, partial power was restored to Habiganj city and nearby areas later, around 11:00am on Friday."

"However, Madhabpur upazila remains without electricity," he added.

Zillur Rahman, general manager of Habiganj Palli Bidyut Samity, said, "Despite the district’s electricity demand of 160 megawatts, only one operational transformer is currently supplying 30 megawatts to four upazilas on a limited basis.

"One of the two damaged transformers is expected to be restored by Friday evening, with the other likely to be operational by Saturday, he added.