Almost a month since EDP announced that it had “established energy to 100% of clients affected by the storms” that battered the country from the last days of January into the first week of February “there are still many people” in the district of Leiria without electricity or communications.
Correio da Manhã/ SIC Notícias have both brought stories of real hardship into focus. We are talking now of almost two months in which people have not been able to turn on an electric light, keep food in refrigerators or freezers, watch television or even make a simple call with their mobile phones.
To add insult to injury, some of these households have continued to receive bills from their energy/ communications suppliers.
CM today refers to the “stone age” in an opinion article that claims it is the government that has failed in its response (promised aid in many cases has still not come through) and “abandoned” people living in isolated areas.
“The state may have forgotten the victims of the carousel of storms, but CM hasn’t”, writes executive director Paulo João Santos.
President Seguro also vowed to ensure stricken communities were not forgotten. It is unclear from recent reports how he is following through on his pledge.
For now it is quite clear that EDP’s announcement on February 26 was precipitous. The majority Chinese-owned company’s CEO Miguel Stilwell told a teleconference presenting EDP’s 2025 annual results that there were “just a few specific situations which will be resolved very quickly.” Since then, very little in the way of information has come from either EDP, or E-REDES, its distribution company.
SIC meantime reports: “According to ANACOM (national communications regulator), there are more than 30,000 clients with problems with their landlines. For many households affected by the storms, normality is still a long way away.”
Source: Correio da Manhã
