Sri Lanka: Why a monkey is being blamed for a country-wide black out

Sri Lanka is experiencing a nationwide power failure. It seems a monkey that climbed into a power station south of Colombo is to blame. 

Amid sweltering temperatures over 30C, hundreds of residents were left without power around midday on Sunday. 

Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody said that a monkey came in contact with our grid transformer, causing an imbalance in the power system. 

Engineers were working to restore power in the island nation, prioritising critical facilities such as hospitals and water treatment plants. Though electricity was restored in some regions within hours, many residents without generators were left in the dark. 

A meme fest erupted on social media, with many users reacting to the power outage. "Only in Sri Lanka can a monkey inside a power sub-station cause an islandwide power outage," wrote one user on X. 

"One monkey=total chaos. Time to rethink infrastructure?" wrote another user. 

While another user wrote, “A rogue monkey is the reason for the darkness in the entire nation??? It is quite unbelievable. Who is to be really blamed here?” 

Though power outages are not new in Sri Lanka, experts have warned the authorities over the outdated power grid. During a deep economic crisis in 2022, rolling blackouts became a grim reality as fuel shortages forced authorities to ration electricity for up to 13 hours a day. 

The Ceylon Electricity Board issued an apology for the Sunday blackout, but they did not go into the details. Also, there is no word on the fate of the monkey as well.