THE Jamaica Public Service (JPS) is reporting that rampant illegal connections in the Rocky Point community of Clarendon, has resulted in several street lights malfunctioning.

Late last year, the energy company said it sought to stem the high rate of illegal connections in the area, by implementing the Residential Advanced Metering Infrastructure (RAMI), among other measures.

With the configuration of this system, residents can no longer use throw-ups to connect to the JPS network.

Consequently, as has happened in other areas, residents have sought to breach the street lights to gain power supply. This, the JPS said, has led to the short circuiting of the lights, which were not designed to supply electricity for multiple household needs.

According to the JPS, while the company has been working hard to address the situation, residents are continuing to tamper with the lights, causing them to repeatedly malfunction.

The JPS is now appealing to residents to desist from these activities, which not only affect the quality of power supply they receive, but also result in damage to the street-lighting infrastructure which is critical to security.

The RAMI system facilitates the remote reading of meters, as well as remote connection and disconnection.