LATE-BREAKING FLASH REPORT: Fallen Mango Tree in Bacong triggers Double Blackouts across southern Negros Oriental [#Channel8NewsEXCLUSIVE]
(Written by Scott Denoga / News Reporter of Disney XD News)
BACONG, NEGROS ORIENTAL -- Various parts of southern Negros Oriental encountered two (2) blackouts early this morning and afternoon on Friday, coinciding with the Labor Day weekend on May 1st, 2026 (Dumaguete local time). The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), a leading private transmission service company, unexpectedly interrupts the Amlan-Siaton 69 kilovolt (kV) transmission line at 'Negros Oriental Electric Cooperative 2' (NORECO II) from 1am onwards and at 2:38pm that day. Affected areas are from Tampi wharf to the entire areas of San Jose, Sibulan, Dumaguete City, Valencia, Bacong, Dauin, Zamboanguita, and Siaton.
The transmission line (TL) connecting Bagacay, Dauin and Siaton was temporarily de-energized for a half-day due to a large mango tree that fell onto Structural 232E of NGCP. The wooden pole at Str. 232E was severed below the lower crossarm. The Amlan-Bagacay TL section of NGCP was re-energized approximately two (2) and a half hours later on Friday at 3:15am onwards. The fallen mango tree was located outside the TL row in 'Barangay Lutao, Bacong, Negros Oriental'.
Channel 8 News and Disney XD News made attempts to contact the Consumer Welfare Desk at NORECO II, but the regional utility company did not reply to our calls or texts due to high demand. Before this, NORECO II briefly shut down its Sibulan, Pulantubig, and Bagacay substations so that NGCP could completely restore their electrical power to the Bagacay-Siaton TL section. NGCP is currently working with NORECO II to resolve the issue and clear its vegetation. Power was restored at 3:23am and again 20 minutes later before 3pm.
The blackouts disrupted the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)'s job fair and several community events in southern NegOr, prompting NGCP and NORECO II to coordinate emergency repairs, restore power to affected substations and clear vegetation.
These immediate steps carried out between late-nights and in the afternoon, helped to prevent further outages and ensured that key events could proceed as planned despite the initial threat of total cancellation. Businesses and local residents in the affected cities and municipalities should soon experience a more reliable power supply.
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SOURCES: *https://www.facebook.com/100080469709889/posts/1014272861265028 *https://www.facebook.com/100064186045325/posts/1363849779097877 and *https://www.facebook.com/100064186045325/posts/1363850935764428
-- Channel 8 News Publication Team