THE ELECTRICITY Authority (EAC) announced yesterday that electricity supply reached a new record high yesterday with 775MW. The last month saw the record high broken four times, with the last high of 773MW recorded on July 18. The EAC attributed the rise in supply to the escalating use of air conditioning units.
The increased supply hit dizzy heights on the day that unions representing EAC workers had threatened a 48-hour strike, which would have signified a cut in the supply by half. On the weekend, the government and unions broke the standoff and reached an agreement, avoiding any strike action.
Yesterday’s highest temperatures reached 43 degrees on the central plain, causing locals and tourists alike to run for shade and water. Senior Meteorological officer Loizos Stephanou said July had been ‘warm’ but not one of the hottest, compared to temperatures recorded in past years. He acknowledged that the month had three isolated incidents where the temperature hit over 41 degrees, including yesterday, but overall had experienced normal temperatures. He said temperatures would stay at around 42 degrees today with a steady decline from Thursday and reaching 37 to 38 degrees by Friday.
Meanwhile, the Labour Ministry yesterday notified employers that workers should not be directly exposed to the sun between 12pm and 4pm due to the prevalent temperatures and humidity.
In a written announcement, the ministry said that light work could be carried out under shade, wearing light clothing and with a plentiful supply of cool fresh water.
Labour Minister Andreas Moushiouttas said on state radio yesterday, “It is the first time such an announcement has been made after the decision was taken to introduce guidelines on measures against heat waves. As part of the attempt to codify warning procedures, the Ministry is issuing announcements and working on new guidelines that will give instructions on how to deal with a heat wave.”
Moushiouttas admitted that the limited number of ministry inspectors would not be able to guarantee implementation of the measures on the thousands of construction sites in Cyprus.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
