Baghdad to get 11 hours of power by end summer

[Kadie]

An Iraqi girl uses a lantern to do her homework in Baghdad, March 2006. Electricity supplies in the Iraqi capital should reach 11 hours a day, almost double the current amount, by the end of this summer, a US military official involved in reconstruction said.(AFP/File/Sabah Arar)

Baghdad to get 11 hours of power by end summer: US general

1 hour, 15 minutes ago



BAGHDAD (AFP) - Electricity supplies in the Iraqi capital should reach 11 hours a day, almost double the current amount, by the end of this summer, a US military official involved in reconstruction said.

"We think we can get Baghdad to about 11 hours of reliable power a day by the end of summer," said Major General William McCoy of the Army Corps of Engineers, involved in Iraq's reconstruction.

According to him, Baghdad currently receives six to eight hours of power a day, though residents of some neighborhoods insist the amount is much less.

The shortage of electricity supplies, especially in the blistering heat of Iraq's summer, has remained a major complaint of Baghdad residents since the April 2003 fall of the old regime.

During the time of Saddam Hussein, Baghdad had between 18 and 24 hours of reliable power a day, admitted McCoy, adding this came at the expense of the rest of the country which only had a few hours a day.

more...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060710/wl_mideast_afp/iraquselectricity_060710200154

[KingFlorez]

1. And this is an improvement how?

They didn't have any problem with power before the war. What a mess it is now, worse than before.

[bbinacan]

12. To be fair

you must note that Baghdad was getting power at the expense of the rest of the country. Still, things should be better than they are.

[uppityperson]

2. Wow. and in another 3 yrs it might be up to 16!!

bah

[LuckyTheDog]

3. Sad

It's sad that such developments qualify as "good news" in that hellhole known as Iraq.

[Turbineguy]

Holy Shit!

I'm putting my house up for sale and moving!:woohoo:

[WCGreen]

4. How much does the rest of theo country get....

I bet the Green Zone is hot all the time...

I bet those shinning lights coming from that "safe" area really make the poor folk swealtering in the Heat of the summer really appreciate being liberated ....

[benburch]

5. Prior to our bombing in the Gulf War...

...24 hours a day was the norm everywhere in Iraq.

But Saddam could not replace the destroyed equipment due to the embargo.

What is OUR excuse? We could have had a dozen new power stations built by now had we been serious.

[acmavm]

6. Any representative from any other country would have the smarts

(hopefully) not to make a blatantly self-serving bullshit statement like this while acting like it is progress. Apparently the idiots in the military and the bush** administration are totally unaware that the Iraqis had electricity 24/7 (as the saying goes) before the illegal and immoral bombing of their country.

[MindPilot]

7. Well see there!! Kenny boy's passing did have a positive effect

He's hardly even cold and electricity is cheaper and more abundant. He was hoarding it after all!

[thereismore]

8. Remember whe Bush poppy said "We need more Waltons and less

Simpsons?" Well, dreams do come true, poppy! The whole Iraq is in the 19th century now.

[shain from kane]

10. Speaking of Poppy, when can we expect those supermarket scanners? In the

year 2525, if Iraqis are still alive?

[shain from kane]

9. Bush, as a fascist, you have to get the trains to run on time.

You're an embarrassment to Mussolini.

[SoCalDem]

11. Wow.. the refrigerator will only be off for 13 hrs a day

Yum:)