Thousands of homes were without power on Saturday night as a wild storm lashed the region, knocking down trees, taking down power lines and forcing one of the world’s biggest bands to bail out of Wagga.
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The mercury soared up to 45 degrees in parts of Wagga on Saturday, before thunderstorms struck in the afternoon.
A mass power outage just before 6pm saw close to 6000 homes switched blacked out and while Essential Energy crews worked to restore power, ongoing wind and rain meant as one suburb came back up, another went down.
The storm also forced The Beach Boys to call off their performance at McDonald’s Park, with rain soaking the stage and sending punters fleeing for cover.
However, the Bureau of Meteorology says the mercury will only reach about 28 degrees in Wagga, a welcome relief after the past two days.
Essential Energy’s southern regional manager, Steven Ilitch, said crews dealt with a large number of fallen powerlines and trees over powerlines throughout the night to progressively restore supply to customers.
However, he reminded residents to be prepared for weather-related power outages.
“Storms, lightning and wind gusts have the potential to damage Essential Energy’s network which spans 95 per cent of the state,” Mr Ilitch said.
“Despite our comprehensive maintenance program, our vast network can be at the mercy of the weather during the traditional storm season from October to April.
“While our crews are ready to respond 24/7, we’re asking our customers to be prepared for storms, stay safe and be patient while we work to restore power after these severe weather events.”
In the event of an unplanned power outage, Essential Energy crews isolate fault areas, secure the safety of the site and re-energise main powerlines first to restore electricity to the majority of customers as quickly as safety allows. Once this is completed, field crews target individual faults and customers’ problems.
Mr Ilitch reminded people to report any fallen powerlines or damaged infrastructure and keep at least eight metres away.
“Always treat powerlines as live and remember that anything in contact with them, such as cars,” he said.
Report any fallen powerlines, network damage, fires or trees contacting powerlines to Essential Energy on 13 20 80 or Triple-0 (000) if the situation is life-threatening.
Stephen Mudd
Stephen Mudd is a journalist for Fairfax Media west of the great divide. He loves music, dogs and travel.
Stephen Mudd is a journalist for Fairfax Media west of the great divide. He loves music, dogs and travel.
