Dubai: Power supply was disrupted in several parts of Sharjah, forcing schools and universities to send students and staff home early on Thursday. A technical glitch disrupted supply just after 7am, a Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (Sewa) official said without specifying the nature of the fault. In some areas the supply could be restored only after eight hours.
The officials located the fault in Noaf substation, affecting supply in Noaf 1, Noaf 2, Noaf 3, Noaf 4 and neighbouring areas of Muwailih and University City.
A Sewa officer told Gulf News technicians were working at the site and power was being restored in phases. An attendant at Sewa emergency hotline said several calls were received since 7am.
Meanwhile, students and employees from schools and universities in the Muwailih area were sent home. While supply in some schools was restored in 30 minutes to an hour, the disruption lasted for several hours in other schools and universities, which opted to send students and staff home.
Final university examination was also cancelled for some students as a result of the power failure.
Vandana Marwaha, principal of Delhi Private School, said all students were sent home as soon as power failure hit her school at around 9am.
“Our emergency response team handled the situation quite well. We made sure all students who travel by bus were sent back home. We followed up with their parents to ensure they already reached home. Parents who take their children to school were immediately informed through texts and calls,”
Marwaha said the school’s generator was kept on at the auditorium and other important areas in the school.
“We decided to send the students home because when we contacted the authorities, we discovered they will take time to fix the problem. It is so hot. We don’t want the students to fall ill because of the heat. Their safety comes first.”
Scholars International Academy also confirmed the power failure. Iqraa International school also suffered from power failure at 8:15am, but only for half an hour, while Wesgreen International School said it only lasted for one hour. Both schools did not send their students home.
American University of Sharjah was also hit with the final examinations being rescheduled and staff sent home at around 1pm.
“What a disappointment, after all of this studying we are not going to get the exam over with. But if I look at it from the bright side, I will have even more time to study,” said senior student Yasmin Mohammad.
Similarly, University of Sharjah employees were also sent home. May K, who works at the university’s library said she was sent home at 1:30pm after sitting in office doing nothing from 8am. “We cant work, because the electricity was off and so we can’t use our computers,” she said.
