Dear Editor,

What happened to our power grid? That’s the big question many Jamaicans are asking after last Friday’s blackout across the whole island, an event we haven’t seen in years and one that revealed some serious issues with our national energy system.

Reports suggest that the outage might have started from a major system glitch — maybe a problem with how power is generated or a failure somewhere in the transmission network — which then caused a chain reaction across the grid. If that’s true, it points to a bigger problem: the lack of enough safeguards to stop small issues from turning into a nationwide blackout.

It’s not acceptable that we rely so heavily on one central grid without enough backup options. A modern electricity system should be built to handle shocks, with features like sectionalisation, automatic safety systems, and local energy sources so a total breakdown can be avoided.

This kind of failure has serious consequences, because steady electricity is key to keeping businesses running, hospitals functioning, digital systems online, and the economy moving. When the power goes out all over the island, it hits small businesses and vulnerable communities the hardest, and the damage can be huge.

This whole situation raises real concerns about how we invest in and maintain our infrastructure. What upgrades have been made recently? Are our current systems able to handle today’s demand and external shocks? And are we moving fast enough to include renewable energy sources that could make the grid more stable instead of destabilising it?

There’s also a growing worry about transparency and accountability. The Jamaica Public Service needs to give a clear, detailed explanation of what happened, backed by technical reports. At the same time, our regulators must make sure a full, independent investigation takes place, with public recommendations and clear timelines for fixing things.

More than anything, this blackout should be a wake-up call. Jamaica needs to speed up its shift to a more resilient energy system — one that includes decentralised options like solar microgrids, battery systems, and independent energy zones that can keep going even if the main grid fails. Important places like hospitals, schools, and emergency services need reliable backup power as part of national security.

Also, the current set-up, in which one big electricity company controls everything, deserves another look. Introducing more competition or stronger regulation could help boost innovation, improve reliability, and give consumers better value.

Going forward, one thing’s clear: This kind of blackout can’t happen again. We need to turn these lessons into real action — upgrading our infrastructure, diversifying our energy sources, and designing a system that’s built not just for efficiency, but for resilience.

In a time when electricity powers nearly everything and many Jamaicans can’t afford generators or solar solutions, we must make sure our country can handle disruptions and bounce back quickly. So what actually happened to our power grid and, more importantly, what are we going to do about it?

Ricardo Smith

ricardo.professional.edu@gmail.com