Residents of St Johns Road, Spanish Town, Without Electricity – After Illegal Connections Destroy Another Transformer

Residents of St Johns Road, Spanish Town, Without Electricity

After Illegal Connections Destroy Another Transformer

October 2, 2021

Residents of St Johns Road in Spanish Town, St Catherine, have been left without electricity after illegal connections destroyed another transformer serving the community.

The transformer was destroyed when it became overloaded by illegitimate users connecting lines to the JPS electrical infrastructure. This transformer was only recently installed, on September 19, 2021. It is the sixth transformer to be destroyed by illegal connections in the St Johns Road community since the start of the year – costing the Company more than J$1.6 Million so far.

Approximately 650 households have been affected by the power outage. Only 25 of these households are legal JPS customers.

“It is very unfair to our paying customers, who have to share the cost of electricity theft,” said Ramsay McDonald, JPS Senior VP Customer Services. “The constant disruption in service is totally unacceptable and terribly inconvenient to customers. Persons who insist on stealing electricity have managed to breach the anti-theft infrastructure that JPS placed in this community, and their illegal actions continue to compromise the service we seek to provide to legitimate customers,” he explained.

“There is no excuse for the perpetration of this crime, which affects so many,” Mr. McDonald continued. “The regularization of electricity supply is a simple and straightforward process, and residents have the option of signing up for prepaid service, which gives them more control over how much they pay for electricity,” he said.

JPS reminds the public that theft of electricity creates a significant safety hazard with a high risk of fire and electrocution to both paying customers and those who are illegally extracting electricity.

For more information, persons may contact the Company on social media, on Facebook or Twitter @myjpsonline, use the MyJPS Mobile App or call the Customer Care Centre at 888CALLJPS (888-225-5577).