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| Ugandan floating island causes national power cut | Ugandan floating island causes national power cut |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| A huge floating island in Lake Victoria triggered a nationwide blackout in Uganda after clogging a turbine in a hydroelectric power station. | A huge floating island in Lake Victoria triggered a nationwide blackout in Uganda after clogging a turbine in a hydroelectric power station. |
| "It was at least two acres, almost two football size pitches," an official, Simon Kasyate, told the BBC. | "It was at least two acres, almost two football size pitches," an official, Simon Kasyate, told the BBC. |
| The outage caused a broadcast by President Yoweri Museveni on the Covid-19 crisis to be delayed by an hour. | The outage caused a broadcast by President Yoweri Museveni on the Covid-19 crisis to be delayed by an hour. |
| Lake Victoria, shared by three East African countries, has for decades been invaded by water hyacinth. | Lake Victoria, shared by three East African countries, has for decades been invaded by water hyacinth. |
| The huge mass of vegetation choked the turbines of Nalubaale Hydro Power Station, causing widespread disruption, power utility company Eskom Uganda said in a statement. | The huge mass of vegetation choked the turbines of Nalubaale Hydro Power Station, causing widespread disruption, power utility company Eskom Uganda said in a statement. |
| The company said that "current rising water levels" of the lake could be behind the movement of the floating island. | The company said that "current rising water levels" of the lake could be behind the movement of the floating island. |
| The water level in the lake is currently at 13.12m, almost reaching the record high of 13.46m seen in 1964, said Mr Kasyate, from the Uganda Electricity Generation Company. | |
| It is usually between seven and 9m, he said. | It is usually between seven and 9m, he said. |
| Heavy rain, clogging of the lake's tributaries and pollution could also explain the island's movement. | Heavy rain, clogging of the lake's tributaries and pollution could also explain the island's movement. |
| He added that electricity was finally restored but workers were still chopping off parts of the floating island. | He added that electricity was finally restored but workers were still chopping off parts of the floating island. |
| "We have always managed to manually deal with this plant, this one was unprecedented," said Mr Kasyate. | "We have always managed to manually deal with this plant, this one was unprecedented," said Mr Kasyate. |