Hannah McLeod 
Work is continuing to restore power throughout Otago and Southland, although cold and snowy weather is making conditions challenging for our crews.
Chief Executive Paul Blue said as at 12pm on Tuesday 28 October, approximately 4,800 customers in Southland and 1,889 customers in Otago remain without power.
“Today’s weather is definitely adding another factor to our work, and we appreciate that this will also be adding to the stress of our customers without power.
“We are urging people without power who need support to reach out to their local Emergency Management teams.”
PowerNet’s focus remains on restoring power to critical infrastructure such as cell towers and water treatment facilities. Good progress is being made on restoring dairy farms, although much of the damage in these areas is complex and widespread.
“We are also very aware that there are a lot of individual properties out there who remain without power where power has been restored to the general area. We have not forgotten those people and are finalising a plan to manage these as soon as possible.
“My message to our communities today is please continue to be patient, we will get to you as quickly as possible. Also, please keep yourself safe – reach out for support if you need to, stay away from damaged lines, don’t attempt to clear debris yourself.”
By the Numbers as at 12pm 28/10
The Power Company Limited network (Southland)
Total Customers: 38,200
Customers without power: 4,800
OtagoNet network (South Otago)
Total Customers: 15,700
Customers without power: 1,889Please note these numbers will change as we undertake repairs and identify faults on the network.
