Car bombs cause major blackout in southwest Colombia

BOGOTA, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- Car bombs exploded Thursday in front of a power station in southwest Colombia, triggering a huge blackout in surrounding cities, local authorities said.

Two cars carrying gas cylinders loaded with explosives exploded near Paez power station in Cauca province but did not cause any injuries or deaths, senior army official Ricardo Jimenez said in a statement.

Jimenez claimed the attack had been carried out by two guerrillas and local army units were now hunting them.

Cauca province has been one of the centers of a conflict between the government and rebel groups, such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN).