Several parts of the country have been plunged in total darkness following a massive power blackout.

The power outage, which occurred just a few minutes to 7 pm, affected several areas in Nairobi as well as a number of towns across the country.

On social media, residents of Mombasa, Kisumu, Eldoret and Kakamega all reported that they had been affected by the power outage.

Other towns which are reported to have been affected include, Elburgon, Molo, Makueni, Kericho, Bomet, Murang’a, Kisii, Busia, Embu, Meru and Migori.

Kenya Power Company explained that the outage was occasioned by a technical hitch that has affected two major power supply lines.

The company said the outage has mainly affected parts of Nairobi, Rift Valley, Western Kenya and South Nyanza.

“We would like to apologise to our customers for the inconvenience caused and reassure them that our technical team is currently working to identify the root cause and restore power to the affected areas,” the company said in a brief statement, promising to give an update on the restoration progress.