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Traffic signals, 20 wastewater pump stations and over 17,500 Waikato homes could be without power for at least the next five hours after today’s bad weather has caused 27 unplanned power outages.
WEL Networks maintains 7000km of power lines in the region, connecting over 100,000 homes and businesses.
A WEL Networks spokesperson said bad weather was causing “widespread damage across the WEL network”.
“While some of the causes of faults are still unknown, downed trees have been identified as the cause of several outages,” the spokesperson said.
WEL Services general manager George Pirie said the company’s control room was restoring supply to “as many customers as possible”.
“All available crews have been dispatched to attend to network faults and restore power as quickly and safely as possible,” Pirie said.
“However, the squalls of stormy weather and lightning do mean that our crews need to remain safe and pause work as necessary.
“We know that this is extremely frustrating for people, and we’d like to thank our customers for their continued patience and assure them that we are doing everything we can to reconnect them as quickly as safely possible.”
WEL Networks’ spokesperson said it was important for all members of the community to “treat power lines as live at all times”.
“If you see a downed power line, stay well clear and call us immediately on 0800 800 935.”
The spokesperson said it was also important to beware of vegetation such as hanging branches caught in power lines, as these also posed a safety risk.
According to WEL’s website, “widespread network damage” has caused 27 unplanned outages, affecting “approximately” 17,500 customers.
Of these, 15,482 affected customers were in Hamilton, 3254 customers were in the Te Mata area and 274 were in the area near Raglan, between Waingaro and Waitetuna.
A recorded message on WEL Networks’ outage and fault reporting hotline said the outages have affected Raglan, Whatawhata, Hillcrest, Chartwell, Rototuna, Huntington, Puketaha and Gordonton.
The outages began after 2.30pm and some were expected to affect properties until after 8pm.
A severe thunderstorm watch remains in place until 7pm for the Coromandel and Waikato. Photo / Maryana Garcia
A statement from Hamilton City Council said the “major power outage” was impacting “multiple services including traffic signals” and more than 20 wastewater pump stations.
“Take extra care on our roads and watch out for pedestrians and cyclists. If traffic signals are out or flashing orange, then use the give-way rules.”
The council’s statement said work was being done to respond to the issues.
“We are receiving many calls, so please only phone our customer services team on 07 838 6699 for urgent council issues. Use our Antenno app for non-urgent issues.”
The council’s statement said traffic signal issues were known to be affecting the intersections of Peachgrove Rd and Te Aroha Rd, Wairere Drive and River Rd, Wairere Drive and Ruakura Rd, Borman Rd, Turakina Rise, and the intersection of Pardoa Rd and Webb Drive.
Meanwhile, New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) said its crews had been busy clearing fallen trees on SH23, SH31, SH37, SH39 and on SH1 at Karāpiro.
The agency said road users should be aware there was still a risk of further fallen trees this evening and overnight, and roads may have to close as it would not be safe for NZTA crews to clear trees in the dark.
North Island hit by torrential downpour
The news comes as torrential downpours, damaging winds and marble-sized hail rolled through the upper North Island today.
A severe thunderstorm watch remains in place until 7pm for the Coromandel and Waikato.
A strong wind watch remains in place until 2am on Thursday, May 30, with MetService advising southwest winds may approach severe gale forces in exposed places, especially north of Kāwhia Harbour, Te Awamutu and Matamata.
Blustery southwest winds have been felt across the country today, gusting at speeds exceeding 100km/h on both islands.
Shortly before 4pm, MetService said the strongest gale was felt on the eastern side of the Coromandel Peninsula at Great Mercury Island, where it blew at 133km/h.
“The tree took down a power pole; the lines came down on a ute that was parked on the property.”
A Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) spokesperson said a Tapu Volunteer Fire Brigade truck responded to the incident near the settlement of Te Puru, about 10km north of Thames, around 10.25am on Wednesday.
The spokesperson said no one was inside the vehicle at the time of the incident on Thames Coast Rd (State Highway 25).
It was also confirmed SH25 was open with emergency responders and Powerco personnel were on-site.
Maryana Garcia is a Hamilton-based multimedia reporter covering breaking news in Waikato. She previously wrote for the Rotorua Daily Post and Bay of Plenty Times.
