KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) has confirmed that some of its customers are now without power due to sustained rain and strong winds caused by Tropical Storm Rafael.

“It is far too early to determine the full impact of the tropical storm on the power grid as we are still feeling the effects of the weather system,” Hugh Grant, president and CEO of JPS, said in a statement Tuesday morning.

“We have customers in several parishes currently without supply, mainly in the south and west of the island. We intend to restore affected customers as soon as it is safe to do so, and ask for patience as we quickly assess and repair the damage to the network,” he said .

Grant explained that while the company will do its best to restore power to customers as quickly as possible, safety will be a top priority.

“Prior to the storm’s arrival, we activated our 24-hour weather incident command operations to ensure a safe and rapid response to outages caused by the weather system. Crews and resources have been moved to locations to allow restoration to begin as soon as it is safe to do so. But it is possible that in some areas, teams will not be able to respond immediately due to dangerous conditions,” he shared.

Grant added that the company urges members of the public to stay away from downed power poles and lines and assume all lines are energized. He advised the public to make reports in such cases.

JPS customers are also reminded not to pay anyone for the reconnection of their power supply, as this is carried out free of charge by JPS and its authorized agents.

“Paying unauthorized people to reconnect your electricity puts you, your family and your property at risk. Report all such offers to us or the police,” Grant warned.

“We understand the inconvenience caused by loss of power, and as we work to restore your power as safely and quickly as possible, we are committed to keeping you up to date with information on promised restoration activities.” , he added.

Customers can create reports and get updates via the MyJPS mobile app, @myjpsonline social media and JPS WhatsApp channel.