Storm knocks power out in parts of shire

Strong winds swept across the Parkes and Forbes shires last Wednesday evening, sending vegetation and debris into powerlines and causing blackouts to almost 1300 homes and businesses. About 1160 locations in the south and east of the Parkes township, including Cookamidgera, Mandagery and Tichborne, lost power about 7.23pm after vegetation came into contact with high-voltage powerlines on Saleyards Road in the Parkes industrial area. Essential Energy crews were dispatched to safely remove the vegetation, restoring power to about 1120 of those customers by about 8.50pm. An Essential Energy spokesperson said further damage to the network was identified near the corner of Langlands Street and Saleyards Road, requiring additional repairs. Except for the 42 premises in the industrial area, most residents had their power back by 9.26pm and power was restored to all remaining Essential Energy customers by 10.47pm. About half an hour earlier 138 homes and businesses in Forbes were without power after strong winds blew metal roofing into powerlines on Wandary Lane, bringing down three spans of powerlines. Crews were dispatched immediately to make the area safe and restored power to 134 customers by about 12.30am. Four premises close to the damaged part of the network remained without power overnight. Crews returned on Thursday morning to complete repairs, temporarily interrupting the power supply while the work was carried out, with all repairs completed and power restored by 2.15pm. While the Bureau of Meteorology hadn't recorded wind gust speeds at its weather station at the Parkes Airport last Wednesday, it did at the Forbes Airport with speeds peaking at 65km/h at 5.50pm. Fortunately it was a quiet night for Parkes SES volunteers. They had been called out to a fallen tree in a backyard but it was before the storm, and to another in Bogan Street near Coles during the storm, but firefighters and Parkes Shire Council staff responded and had the area cleared quickly. Parkes SES unit commander Kim Palmer said her team had since received a call regarding a roof that was damaged during the storm, which they took a look at on Friday afternoon. The new SES headquarters in Boyd Circuit was among the premises without power that evening. "The power outage did give us the opportunity to test our emergency lighting at the new unit," Ms Palmer said. "And I can confirm it worked perfectly. "That also includes our manual systems so we can continue our operations, such as opening the gate and roller doors." The Essential Energy spokesperson thanked customers for their patience as they worked to safely restore their electricity supply last week. "Customers are reminded to keep at least eight metres away from fallen powerlines, power poles and damaged electricity equipment and any anything in contact with it, or 150 metres away if any part of the electricity network is submerged in water," the spokesperson said. "Always assume these powerlines are live and very dangerous. If you see fallen powerlines, please report the location to Essential Energy on 13 20 80." READ MORE: Firefighters race against wind to contain fire