Massive blackout hits Kazakhstan, affecting Zhetysu region and beyond; neighbors also impacted

A widespread power outage struck Kazakhstan on August 14, leaving the Zhetysu region, Taldykorgan, Tekeli, and eight surrounding districts without electricity.

The disruption began around 2:38 p.m. when three 500 kV overhead power lines, L-5400, L-5300, and L-5320, owned by KEGOC JSC tripped. This incident resulted in a significant power loss, affecting numerous areas. In Taldykorgan, the outage extended beyond electricity, causing disruptions to internet and mobile communications. Emergency generators were activated at social facilities across the affected cities and districts to maintain essential services.

Power disruptions also affected Almaty and the Almaty region around 3:00 p.m. on the same day, with residents reporting outages across various districts. The failure on KEGOC-owned 500 kV lines led to a load shedding of 300 MW. The Almaty region's Zhambyl, Balkhash, Yesik, Karasay, Shelek, Raiymbek, Uygur, Ili, Kegen, and Talgar districts were among those impacted. In Almaty city, the blackout caused traffic lights to fail, leading to severe traffic congestion, prompting the deployment of traffic controllers to major intersections.

Adding to the widespread impact, residents in neighboring Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan began reporting disruptions to their electricity supply. Amidst the chaos, social media users in Kazakhstan reacted with humor, humorously linking the massive blackout to the upcoming concert of American rapper Kanye West scheduled for the evening of August 14.