KEY POINTS
- A transmission tower collapse in Kaduna has cut power to parts of the state, caused by both storm damage and vandalism.
- TCN engineers are working to rebuild the tower while rerouting supply to minimise blackouts.
- The company says over 260 towers have been vandalised nationwide in 18 months, threatening Nigeria’s electricity stability.
Nigeria’s already fragile electricity network suffered another setback last week after a transmission grid collapsed in Kaduna, leaving parts of the state without power.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, said the failure was the result of both extreme weather and vandalism, underscoring the mounting threats to the country’s power infrastructure.
The collapse occurred on September 18 in Rigasa, a densely populated suburb of Kaduna, after heavy rains and strong winds battered the city.
TCN disclosed that vandals had earlier removed key structural parts of the steel tower, weakening it before the storm finally brought it down.
Sabotage Worsens Weather Damage
According to the company, the collapse cut bulk power supply to several Kaduna Electric distribution centres, particularly those serving communities in Kaduna South.
Residents in areas such as Kinkinau, Yan Tukwane, Kabala West and Unguwan Muazu have been plunged into darkness, while parts of Kaduna North remained unaffected.
To mitigate the disruption, TCN advised Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company to reroute supply by linking its Mogadishu and Abakwa 33kV feeders—an emergency measure to restore power to at least some neighborhoods.
Engineers have also been deployed to dismantle the fallen tower and begin erecting a replacement.
“We apologise for the inconvenience this has caused our customers,” said Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s General Manager of Public Affairs. “Every effort is being made to minimise the duration of the outage.”
The incident comes just months after the state-owned utility warned of an alarming rise in attacks on its network. Between January 2024 and June 2025, 264 high-voltage towers were vandalised nationwide, according to TCN’s data.
These attacks, often motivated by scrap metal theft, political sabotage, or other economic incentives, have repeatedly plunged large regions into darkness and undermined government efforts to stabilise supply.
The agency is urging greater community vigilance, asking residents to report suspicious activity near transmission lines. Without stronger protection, officials warn, the grid’s capacity to support Nigeria’s fragile economy will continue to be undermined by forces both natural and man-made.
