Local resident restores power line three weeks after Latvia storm

A local resident restored electricity to three households in Mazzalve parish, Aizkraukle municipality, three weeks after a storm damaged their power line, LSM reported. Power was restored on September 10 through a roughly 2.6-kilometre line owned by the municipality.

The residents pay their electricity bills but must maintain the line themselves. They have been trying for years to persuade Sadales tīkls, the electricity distribution company, to take it over.

Forester Aleksandrs Francs lives at one of the three properties. He began living there in 2011 to preserve his mother’s inheritance. The homes share one power line, which provides enough electricity for lighting and appliances such as a washing machine.

The storm at the end of August severely damaged the line. Francs and a friend began repairing it immediately, spending about 3,000 euros to restore power to his home and his neighbours’ homes. The repair is temporary and requires an additional pole and further work.

Francs said the line needs repairs about once a year. It has been municipal property since the 1990s, when a forestry operation was liquidated and the municipality took over the network without transferring it to an electricity company. Because the municipality has no specialist to maintain it, officials have allowed Francs to carry out the work while discussions with Sadales tīkls continue.