Jakarta, August 4: Tens of millions of people on Indonesia's heavily populated Java island were affected by a widespread electricity outage Sunday after disruptions at several power plants, the state utility PLN said. The shutdown hit parts of the sprawling capital Jakarta -- home to some 30 million people -- and forced the temporary closure of its new mass rapid transit system. New York Blackout: Lots of Questions, No Answers and Mayor Bill de Blasio Under Fire.

Passengers were safely evacuated from several MRT carriages when the power went out, according to the system's operator, while the city's commuter trains were also impacted. The blackout -- which began around noon local time (0500 GMT) and was expected to last until later Sunday -- caused sporadic disruptions in mobile phone services and cash machines, while some apartment buildings were left in the dark. Huge Power Outage Plunges Manhattan into Darkness.

Many buildings had to resort to power generators to keep the lights on.

Outages also turned off some traffic lights, aggravating the capital's notorious congestion. PLN said the blackout was caused when a gas turbine at a major power plant went down and by a disruption at another facility. Both are on the western end of Java. "We're doing our best to fix the system so the power comes back to normal," it added.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 04, 2019 04:32 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).