Power disconnected: Crews check homes after crash

A Powerco crew in Seymour Place work to restor power after a vehicle hit a power pole in Sherwood Street, Otumoetai. Photo/Rosalie Liddle Crawford.

Two dozen homes in Tauranga have been disconnected from the main power supply following a crash.

Powerco fault crews have been door-knocking 25 homes in and around Sherwood Street, Tauranga, this morning following an incident on Monday evening where a vehicle collided with a power pole.

“Power has been disconnected to the 25 properties, connected to a specific transformer, to enable fault crews to check customers’ meter boards,” a Powerco spokesperson said in a statement this morning.

“Power lines were brought down in the vehicle accident.

“It’s believed that when the power lines came down, a high voltage pole line [the top lines on the power pole], may have connected with the low voltage power lines below, affecting customers on this transformer.

“These types of line clashes can affect properties’ meter boards and customers’ appliances.”

The original outage cut power to 989 customers just after 5.30pm on Monday, with power restored by 8.40pm.

Map showing power outage in Bellevue following a car hitting a power pole in Sherwood St on Sunday evening. Image/Powerco

According to a police spokesperson last night, police received numerous calls at around 5.40pm after a car collided with a power pole on Sherwood Street, bringing down power lines across the road.

“The car left immediately following the crash and has yet to be located,” police said.