Fire at Eastern substation in Nouakchott cuts power to city neighbourhoods

A fire broke out at the Eastern Substation in northern Nouakchott, Mauritania, on Friday evening, damaging various pieces of electrical equipment and cutting power to surrounding neighbourhoods. A second substation in western Nouakchott experienced a related breakdown around the same time. The President of Mauritania visited the site several days later to assess the damage and review repair progress. Maintenance and repair teams worked continuously to restore power, with officials expressing optimism that supply to homes would be restored within hours, while repairs to the rest of the station's equipment continued. The President ordered the government to provide all necessary human, material and technical resources to accelerate the repair process and called for a transparent investigation into the causes of the incident.

The President stated that the underlying issue relates to the distribution network rather than the production sector, and noted that modernisation of Nouakchott's electricity distribution infrastructure has been ongoing but needs to be accelerated.

1. Ageing distribution networks require accelerated modernisation to reduce the risk of equipment failures and fires.
2. Preventive maintenance and readiness measures should be strengthened to avoid malfunctions and limit their impact on customers.
3. Following any major outage, a transparent investigation into root causes and accountability should be conducted to prevent recurrence.

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