Sri Lankan power cuts affect all walks of life

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By The Associated Press

Sri Lanka is going through hours of daily power cuts since it can’t operate turbines because of a fuel shortage and the government has only a little foreign currency to pay for oil imports.

The country has no power for 7 1/2 hours a day, forcing children to study under homemade kerosene oil lamps, fishermen to limit fishing, and shops and industries to limit production and business.

Government ministers have admitted that they struggle to pay the ships docked in Colombo port before unloading their fuel stocks. Dry weather has also limited hydropower production in shrinking reservoirs.

Sri Lankans queue up to buy diesel at a fuel station in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa last week sacked Udaya Gammanpila as energy minister after he publicly discussed the enormity of the crisis and criticized authorities for not prioritizing imports.

Vehicles and people holding containers stand in sometimes kilometers-long queues near gas stations. Passenger buses and trucks transporting goods are unable to operate according to their normal routine. The limited number of foreign tourists visiting the country are confined to their hotels, unable to travel. Some spend time in the dark.

Sri Lanka’s Japan friendship bridge, one of the entrance points to capital Colombo is seen in the dark as workers load iron scraps to a lorry during a power cut in Peliyagoda, on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan bus worker carries empty containers searching for fuel as people gather at a fuel pump in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves have dwindled because its tourism sector is severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and exports are down. Additionally, the country has to pay billions of dollars in foreign debts for infrastructure projects that don’t make money.

This year’s loan repayment obligations alone cost nearly $7 billion.

A Sri Lankan girl uses a kerosene oil lamp to attend online lessons during a power cut in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, March 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan retailer uses his diesel-powered truck to light up his sales outlet in Kelaniya, on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A train and vehicles roll in the dark during a power cut in Kelaniya, on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, March 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan boy watches youth playing a pickup game of cricket at an indoor facility lit up using a diesel-powered electric generator in Hendala, a suburb of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, March 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan mother interacts with her children as they attend online lessons with a help of a kerosene oil lamp during a power cut in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, March 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan coir mill worker takes a nap at an idle production line during a power cut in Hendala, a suburb of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, March 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan food seller waits for customers in his outlet during a power cut in Peliyagoda, on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Thursday, March 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A cement brick-making machine is seen idle without operation during a power cut in Hendala, a suburb of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, March 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A Sri Lankan street food vendor serves customers outside a closed shop due to power cuts in Hendala, on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, March 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)