Locals pour to the streets to protest power cuts in Turkey's south

Burcu Özkaya Günaydın / DUVAR

Locals in Turkey's southern province of Hatay have protested increasing power cuts in the region. 

Residents of Samandağ, Reyhanlı and Defne districts have been suffering from power cuts for the past week after a transformer explosion. 

Fed up with the issue, locals released a press statement in front of the Turkish Electricity Distribution Corporation (TEDAŞ) building on Dec. 28 and called on the authorities to find a solution. 

Another power cut took place after their statement, prompting them to pour to the streets to protest. 

The demonstrators told Duvar that they've been calling TEDAŞ constantly, but that the company doesn't answer their calls. They also said that their children have been getting sick because of the cold caused by the lack of electricity. 

"Illnesses increased in every household because of these power cuts. We can't use our central heating boilers or heaters," Yusuf Doğruel, speaking on behalf of Harbiye neighborhood residents, said. 

According to Doğruel, locals were told to use less energy. 

"Saying this means mocking us," he said. 

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) deputy Tülay Hatimoğulları Oruç brought the issue to parliament's agenda, asking about the measures taken to prevent these cuts.

(English version by Neşe İdil) 

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