New manhole explosion in Rio results in fine for Light (electricity company).
It happened around 5 PM on Rua Sete de Setembro, one of the busiest streets in the city center; yesterday, four other iron manhole covers went flying like bombs; the city government blames the power company; the population feels unsafe.
247 - After four manholes exploded yesterday on Rua da Assembleia, one of the busiest streets in downtown Rio de Janeiro, with their heavy covers flying through the air, another similar incident has just occurred today. Around 17:00 PM, a manhole whose underground gallery is managed by the energy concessionaire Light exploded in front of the João Caetano theater, on Rua Sete de Setembro, another busy street in the center of the capital of Rio de Janeiro. In the early afternoon, in the populous neighborhood of Copacabana, a manhole emitted thick smoke but did not explode.
The Rio de Janeiro city government will fine Light, the city's electricity concessionaire, for damage to public property and disruption of public roads. In a statement released today, the city government affirms that it "considers unacceptable the incidents and explosions in the sewers and underground chambers of the Light concessionaire in the city, which have jeopardized the safety of the population and public property." Light was acquired by the Minas Gerais state-owned company Cemig. During the administration of current Senator Aécio Neves (PSDB-MG), several top-level positions in the company were filled, with high salaries, through political appointments. Among the Rio de Janeiro public, it is believed that this type of occupation of the company has significantly weakened the quality of services offered to the population.
The Municipal Attorney General's Office, which has already sent notifications to the company and the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel), is preparing legal action against Light. After the explosion of an underground box in Copacabana in April of this year, the Rio de Janeiro city government created a commission to monitor the situation.
Coordinated by the Secretariat of Conservation and Public Services, the commission met with Light several times and received information regarding the company's investment plan to resolve the issue. Light states that it is not aware of any imminent risk in any public space in the city.
The city hall's monitoring committee also met with the director general and executives of Aneel (Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency) in Brasília to gather information and alert the regulatory agency about the events in Rio, requesting urgent action. Aneel reported that it is closely monitoring the situation, as well as Light's investment programs.
Light informed, through a statement, that its teams isolated the area around the underground box after smoke was reported and that technicians will take the necessary steps to carry out the required services.