Residents of the São Francisco do Iratapuru community, in Laranjal do Jari, report difficulties after a blackout that, according to them, began on October 25th. Without electricity, the population faces problems in the supply of drinking water, in addition to the loss of medicines in the health unit and food stored by families.
The community is served by a generator set that was out of fuel, which would have caused the service to be interrupted. Given the situation, the 2nd Public Prosecutor's Office of Laranjal do Jari filed, this Tuesday (10), a Public Civil Action against the State of Amapá and CEA Equatorial to guarantee the restoration of electricity.
In the action, the Public Ministry asks the State to provide, within 48 hours, a diesel generator with the capacity to serve the community and guarantee energy supply 24 hours a day.
In addition to the emergency measure, the MP requests that CEA Equatorial present, within 48 hours, a technical report pointing out the causes of the service interruption. The agency also requests the delivery, within 15 days, of a project with a schedule for a definitive solution. According to the proposal, the works must be completed within 60 days.
In a statement, CEA Equatorial informed that the community is included in the planning of the Light for All - Remote Regions program. According to the company, the project is scheduled to be completed in the second half of 2026.
The concessionaire also informed that, to date, it has not been formally cited in the legal action filed by the Public Ministry.
g1 tried to contact the State Government, but until the closing of this article there was no response.
No power for more than 10 days
According to the Public Ministry, residents of the traditional community have faced problems related to the supply of electricity since 2025.
In the most recent episode, the generator ran out of fuel and caused a series of problems. Among them are the suspension of classes at the only school in the community, failures in the water supply and the loss of food stored by residents.
The MP reported that the lack of energy compromised access to drinking water and has caused cases of diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration among residents.
Without energy to operate the supply systems, residents began to use water from the river that runs through the community for consumption and other daily activities.
In a video recorded this Tuesday (10), a resident shows spoiled food on the banks of the river and reports on the difficulties faced by the community. He claims he no longer knows how to deal with the situation (see video at the beginning of this article).
Community food is spoiling — Photo: Reproduction
A resident, who asked not to be identified, described the scenario faced by the community as a calamity situation.
"We residents of Iratapuru, ask them to send us quality energy. We want more public policies aimed at our community. It's not because we are a traditional community that we live somewhat isolated", he reported.
According to the resident, the community received fuel sent by Laranjal do Jari City Hall and a private company, which avoided a total interruption of the service. Even so, supply remained limited, only operating between 6am and 11pm.
"With this fuel, we are turning on the generator from 6 am to 11 pm, so we only have 5 hours of energy, and there is no way to freeze our food, and apart from the water problem. The water problem is causing illnesses, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain in the community, in the community's children, elderly people", he said.
Community is located in the interior of Laranjal do Jari — Photo: Reproduction
MP monitors the case
The legal action is the result of an administrative procedure opened after demonstrations by residents during the II Itinerant Social Listening Journey, carried out by the Public Ministry of Amapá (MP-AP).
According to the MP, during the extrajudicial investigation it was found that the community received limited energy through a diesel generator supplied with a restricted amount of fuel.
The Public Prosecutor's Office reported that it tried to solve the problem extrajudicially, demanding that the authorities increase the supply of fuel and connect the community to a permanent electricity network. However, according to the agency, despite demands for an execution schedule, no work has started yet.
In the action, the MP also asks for the State of Amapá and CEA Equatorial to be ordered to pay R$300,000 for collective moral damages. According to the agency, the request takes into account the alleged omission and the delay in resolving the problem.
Read the full note from CEA Equatorial
CEA Equatorial informs that, to date, it has not been formally cited in the legal action filed by the Public Ministry of the State of Amapá (MP-AP), which deals with the situation of electricity supply to the community of São Francisco do Iratapuru, located in the municipality of Laranjal do Jari.
The distributor clarifies that the community is already included in the service planning of the Light for All Program – Remote Regions, expected to be implemented in the second half of 2026. This forecast has already been communicated to the Federal Public Ministry in Amapá (MPF-AP), which also monitors the implementation of the aforementioned federal program.
Service to the community will be provided through the Individual Electricity Generation System with Intermittent Source (SIGFI), a solution that uses photovoltaic solar energy to enable the supply of electricity in remote locations.
With the implementation of the system, each consumer unit will have its own solar energy generation structure, becoming part of CEA Equatorial's customer base, with the right to technical assistance and maintenance of generation equipment, at no additional cost, according to the conditions applicable to the program.
