Lebanon’s 2 main state power plants shut down, out of fuel

By SARAH EL DEEB
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s state electricity company says the country’s two main power plants were forced to shut down after running out of fuel. That leaves crisis-hit Lebanon with no government-produced power. The country is dependent on fuel imports but erratic power supplies have put hospitals and essential services in crisis mode. It’s also increasingly dependent on private operators that also struggle amid an unprecedented crash of the national currency. Blackouts that used to last for three to six hours a day now often leaving entire areas with no more than two hours of state power a day.