Curfew remains in place on French territory of Guadeloupe amid power blackout

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French authorities maintained a night curfew on the Caribbean territory of Guadeloupe on Saturday as they battled to restore power they accused striking energy workers of sabotaging.

Guadeloupe and the nearby French island of Martinique have seen weeks of often violent protests over the cost of living. A night curfew has been in force in Martinique for 16 days because of unrest there.

French authorities kept Guadeloupe under curfew for a second night "to guarantee safety and tranquility" after the island's power was completely cut on Friday.

Burning debris and road blocks were erected across the island on Thursday night.

The EDF power company said that two-thirds of the 380,000 people hit by a blackout had electricity again. Authorities accused striking workers of blocking the Jarry power station's engines and cutting electricity to the island.

Regional government chief Guy Losbar said he was "outraged" by the workers' actions.

Authorities in Martinique, which has a population of about 350,000, said that despite the curfew around 50 masked "troublemakers" had set up burning roadblocks in two districts.

On previous nights, shots have been fired, trucks stolen and petrol stations looted, authorities said.

(AFP)

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