Severe storm power restoration 5pm update

Good progress has been made today restoring power to customers affected by severe weather across Powerco’s electricity network since the weekend.

However, as power has been restored, new outages have been occurring throughout the day, with on-going gale force winds continuing to cause damage, particularly in Manawatū, Powerco Head of Network Operations, Caz Haydon, says.

“Thank you to our customers who are without power for your patience and understanding as we continue to do all we can to safely restore supply.

“High winds are continuing to make it challenging to repair damaged lines. When winds are this high, crews are unable to safely work up power poles using elevated work platforms and ladders. This can delay restoring power.”

Winds have been gusting 88km/h to 95km/h in parts of Manawatū and Taranaki today, and 98km/h in Wairarapa.

“While we will continue to keep working into the evening restoring supply, unfortunately because of the conditions some customers may not be able to be reconnected tonight.

“For safety reasons, we’ll be standing crews down for the evening at 10pm, except for those who will be on hand to respond to any emergencies during the night. The rest of our crews will start work again in the morning,” Caz Haydon says.

Current outage information can be found on Powerco’s website at www.powerco.co.nz/outages.

In the event of an emergency such as power lines coming down, people should ring emergency services on 111 or call Powerco’s 24/7 emergency line on 0800 27 27 27.