Quang Ninh(VNA) – Chairman of the People’s Committee of the northern province of QuangNinh’s Co To island district Tran Nhu Long on June 21 advised tourists not to visitCo To island during power disruption time to reduce electricity and watersupply pressure in the island.

Long said thatamidst power loss and restriction in water supply, the island may not able toprovide basic services to tourists if the number of visitors to the island istoo large.

He suggestedtourists choose other similar tourist destinations in the province such as QuanLan, Ngoc Vung and Ban Sen islands of Van Don district.

The Co Toauthorities will inform people and tourists as soon as power is resumed, saidLong.

In the peak tourismseason, Co To welcomes 7,000-10,000 tourists per day. But the island can supplythe best services to only 5,000 visitors daily.

Earlier on June 18,lightning damaged the 22KV power transmission line that provides electricityfor Co To island district and five communes of Van Don island district of QuangNinh, disrupting electricity supply for the islands for days.

The transmissionline’s section in Ba Mun island of Co To district was struck by lightning at 13:37on June 18.

Supply was resumedfor the communes in Van Don district early the next day, but the Quang Ninhpower company is yet to fix the line transmission to Co To.

The company said thepower cut will continue on the island for a couple of days, noting thatdifficult terrains and unfavourable weather conditions are hindering repairingwork. Disruption of electricity has also resulted in difficulties in supplyingwater.

Co To islanddistrict has been connected to the national power grid since 2013 and the powerfailure may affect local tourism activities.

The districtPeople’s Committee has informed local people and businesses on the blackoutincident so that they can prepare for power generators during the time of poweroutage.

Co To, dubbed “agreen pearl”, is one of the farthest inhabited islands from the mainland. Butit is now experiencing speedy tourism development.

Located 80kilometres from the mainland, the island district comprises Co To Lon (large CoTo island), Co To Be (small Co To island) and 15 smaller islands. From Cai Rongport in Van Don district, another island district of Quang Ninh province,travellers can take high-speed boat trips that take an hour and a half to coverthe distance.

Co To’s attractionsinclude turquoise sea and tranquil beaches along with tropical primeval foresteco-system that is almost in its primary conditions.

Untouched and largebeaches in the island are attractive with white sands and wavy water. Hong Van,Van Chay, small Co To or beaches along Thanh Lan island are among the bestbeaches of Co To.

The island is alsofamous for abundant fresh and diverse seafood, along with many historical andcultural sites.

Statistics showedthat the number of tourists has surged over the years. If in 2013, the districtwelcomed some 56,000 visitors, the figure doubled in the following years. Theisland served 320,000 tourists in 2017 and nearly 15,200 in the first fourmonths of this year.-VNA