South Africa’s Ramaphosa calls ‘state of disaster’ on power

By MOGOMOTSI MAGOME
Associated Press

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a state of disaster with immediate effect to deal with the country’s severe electricity crisis including prolonged daily power blackouts. In his State of the Nation address Thursday night Ramaphosa said that extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures. He said that South Africa’s energy crisis is an existential threat to the nation’s economy and social fabric. The declaration of a state of disaster comes as rolling power cuts of up to 8 hours per day are hitting homes, factories and businesses across the nation of 60 million. According to Ramaphosa, the declaration will enable his government to exempt essential services like hospitals and water treatment plants from power blackouts.