“LIKE the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (TTEC) encouraging Laventille people to go out and kill each other at nights.”

This bold statement came from an annoyed Laventille resident who claimed that TTEC has been cutting off electricity supply too often at nights within recent times.

The frustrated young man said that he is now afraid to go home at nights from work when there is no electricity, as he passes through quite a few lonely tracks.

He revealed that the blackouts have been taking place on a regular basis over the past two months.

The father of one pointed out: “Last Monday night, electricity went on three different occasions.

“The first power outage lasted approximately two hours and the others were around one hour each.

“My daughter and I were watching television at the time of the first power outage and she jumped on me when it happened, since she was really scared.”

He continued: “It usually has plenty scratch bombs and other fire crackers bursting in the area around this time of year.

“Apart from that, the amount of crime and shooting taking place in the area is enough to have people hiding in their houses at night, praying that their loved ones are safe and out of harm’s way.”

The Laventille man said that other frightened residents of the area usually mistake the echoing firecrackers in the distance for gunshots.

“When the noise rings out, my five-year-old daughter does ask me if some body getting shoot and if we will see a dead body on the road in the morning.

“It really scares me when she asks me these frightening questions and I don’t know how to answer.

“The darkness from the outages only makes matters worse.”

He also noted that there are quite a number of folks from his community who work night-shift jobs.

“When some of them find out that there is no electricity at home, they hang around town until they hear power has been restored, while the brave ones venture home as usual, despite the darkness.

“There are plenty single-parent mothers in this area who work extra night jobs to sustain their families.

“This power outage nonsense puts these young women’s lives at risk every time they have to venture off to work when there is no electricity.”

As far as the residents are concerned, the recurring power outages create a major inconvenience and a security hazard.

“And every time the electricity goes and I try to call TTEC, the phone lines are always busy,” said the resident.

“I am fed-up of this negligence by TTEC in my area; shame on you, TTEC.”