Southland and Otago communities are being asked to ‘stay safe, stay patient’ as thousands of homes, businesses, and critical facilities remain without electricity this morning.

PowerNet Chief Executive Paul Blue said staff are securing helicopter flights today to complete aerial assessments quickly, which will inform our understanding of the damage to electricity infrastructure.

“Our staff here on the ground have told me that this is the most destructive weather event some have seen in their careers in the power industry,” Mr Blue said.

“Our priority today is to assess the extent of damage and to make it safe, followed by making repairs to parts of our network that supply power to lifeline utilities like water, wastewater, and health facilities.”

PowerNet teams did manage to successfully restore power to some small communities and important facilities late last night, including to some rest homes and health providers.

“At this stage, we are asking people not to call us to let us know their power is out, or to ask for when their power will be restored,” Mr Blue said.

Please only call PowerNet if you find a broken pole, downed lines, or trees across lines. Do not approach damaged equipment. Call 111 if there is an emergency or threat to life, and call us on 0800 808 587 to report this kind of damage.

“The reality of our situation is only coming to light this morning, and it will take us time to understand the full extent of the damage. We cannot provide estimates of when power will be restored yet.”

It’s also possible that power could come back on, only to go out again.