In October of the previous year, travellers faced considerable disruption while travelling from Malaysia to Singapore when a power outage left them navigating their journey in complete darkness. In a reminiscent occurrence, a power outage occurred at the Johor Bahru (JB) checkpoint during the early hours of December 6, casting the area into profound darkness typically associated with the early morning hours.
A prolonged power outage at the Johor Bahru land checkpoint caused significant travel disruptions between Malaysia and Singapore, leading to extensive queues at the immigration facility and increased traffic on the Causeway. The power has been successfully restored.
As of 4 pm, the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) of Singapore reported that the backlog of departing traffic from Malaysia at Woodlands Checkpoint has been alleviated. The power disruption commenced at midnight on Tuesday.
As per information shared on a cross-border Telegram group, power was gradually reinstated at the complex starting at approximately 9:20 am. The power outage also had an impact on the electronic gates (e-gates) at the Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine (CIQ) facility. To prevent a recurrence of the incident, Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh announced that the Johor government plans to replace all seven generators at a cost of approximately RM800,000 (S$229,000).
Additionally, two external power supply systems will be introduced at the Ban San Hin (BSI) checkpoint to supplement the existing single system.
Mr Fazli mentioned that the replacement of the generators is part of the long-term solution they have formulated in response to the blackout the previous night.
The situation led to disruptions in traffic at Singapore’s Woodlands checkpoint, prompting the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) to caution travellers about significant departure traffic “attributed to a backlog from Malaysia.”
At 11 am, the ICA issued a statement, anticipating delays and advising travellers to check traffic conditions before commencing their journeys.
Johor Chief Minister Onn Hafiz Ghazi expressed his distress and embarrassment about the incident in a Facebook post on Wednesday. He shared a photo of a letter from energy company Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), dated Nov 27, which indicated a temporary disruption in electricity supply to several areas, including the CIQ complex and JB Sentral, from 8 pm on Tuesday to 4 am on Wednesday. The reason for the outage persisting beyond 4 am remains unclear.
Numerous travellers took to social media to share their experiences during the incident. One Facebook user, Atiqah M. Li, remarked, “CIQ is dark like there’s a concert,” while another encouraged fellow travellers to “stay strong.” The power outage seemed to have affected the motorcycle lanes too.
It was mentioned that there could be delays, and travellers were suggested to check traffic conditions before commencing their journeys. The advice included referring to the organization’s Facebook page for updates. A look at the live camera feed on the OneMotoring portal around 12:30 pm indicated significant congestion on the Causeway towards Singapore.