Gun shots cause hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses

Caffeine addicts queued all day outside Cellini's, one of the few Paihia businesses serving coffee during the power cut. PHOTO / PETER DE GRAAF

The hunt is on for "a bloody idiot" who sabotaged the Far North, cutting power to more than 32,000 homes and businesses.

Bullet casings were found by police under three damaged national grid pylons south of Kawakawa yesterday. Power had been cut about 3am and was restored from 2pm yesterday, with most schools and businesses shut causing hundreds of thousands of dollars of losses.

Service station sign in Paihia. PHOTO / Peter de Graaf

Police did not have a description of the suspect, but "a bloody idiot" was the descriptor ventured by Far North Mayor John Carter.

"It's just brainless. It's impossible to describe exactly how I feel about someone like that," he said.

The pylons, in a forestry block on Mountain Rd south of Kawakawa, had damaged glass insulators from suspected gunshots.

"Police staff have been canvassing the area to speak with neighbours who may have seen or heard something out of the ordinary," a police spokeswoman said.

They were asking anyone who saw suspicious activity on or around Mountain Rd between midnight and 3am to contact Kaikohe police on 09 405 2960 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Mr Carter said the day-long blackout showed how vulnerable the Far North's power supply was, and highlighted the importance of plans to expand the geothermal power station at Ngawha.

"It will make us self-reliant, a contributor of energy rather than a taker."

The power cut turned some shopping centres into ghost towns.

In Kerikeri many shops and all banks and service stations closed for the day. In Paihia the outage couldn't have come at a worse time with cruise ship Celebrity Solstice in the Bay with almost 3000 passengers on board.

Cellini's, the one shop that was serving coffee thanks to a generator rushed in at 8am, had a queue of at least 30 people snaking down the Williams Rd footpath.

Abigail Kain, left, and Hannah Russell work on the "power cut menu" of barbecued bacon and egg buns at Alongside on the Paihia waterfront. PHOTO / PETER DE GRAAF

At waterfront restaurant Alongside staff fired up a barbecue, dusted off a vintage credit card machine, and sold bacon and egg buns as part of a simplified menu.

"We just go back to the old ways of doing things. There's no point getting frustrated about it," owner Sarah Greener said.

"It's about making sure people have a good enough experience, to make sure they go back to the ship saying how resourceful we are, not how nobody bothered opening."

English tourist David Steel was among those making the most of a day without Wi-Fi. He was drinking tea made on a barbecue and was amazed there was only one power cable supplying the Far North with no backup.

"But everyone seems to be pretty relaxed about it, they're laughing about it. In the UK people would be banging on tables and saying 'what's all this about?'."

Making the most of a chilly day without power in Paihia are, from left, Dorina Brown (Australia), Nicky Elmes (UK) and David Steel (UK). PHOTO / PETER DE GRAAF

Solstice passengers Max and Marlene Wald, from Florida, were on the second-to-last day of their cruise around New Zealand.

The lack of power had not affected their enjoyment of Paihia, Mr Wald said.

The couple had been shopping at the Village Green craft market, which doesn't rely on power, and watched an "absolutely remarkable" kapa haka performance by the children of Kawakawa Primary School.

However, with many cafes closed they were heading back to the ship for lunch.

"That's a shame, more for them than for us because they'll lose business," he said.

Meanwhile, some motorists were stranded because service station pumps weren't working. One of the few places selling petrol was Pak 'n Save in Kaitaia which has its own generator. The queue for fuel stretched around the carpark.

Business Paihia chairman Craig Johnston said the outage would have cost businesses in the town tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Some also ended up with damaged stock, such as icecream.

Mr Johnston was shocked the outage was the result of a deliberate act.

"It's a lot of stress and drama for people who are trying to make some money after a long winter," he said.

Shop sign in Paihia. PHOTO / Peter de Graaf

Northland Chamber of Commerce chief executive Tony Collins said it was a reminder for businesses to prepare.

"You can't plan for every contingency but you can look at things like alternative sources of power."

Mr Collins said the use of old analogue phones and ways to protect data during power cuts were things businesses could do in future.

The Ministry of Education said it believed almost all 72 schools across the district had closed yesterday.

"The advice given to schools and ECE centres is if they need to close in order to keep students and staff safe they should do so," said the ministry's Katrina Casey.