Severe weather has caused widespread power outages across Tasmania, leaving over 12,000 homes and businesses in the dark this morning.
The north and north-west of the state have been particularly hard hit, with 2,000 customers affected in the Wynyard area and 1,700 without power in Sulphur Creek.
In the south, over 1,000 homes and businesses around Southport are also currently experiencing outages.
TasNetworks crews are working to restore power as quickly as possible, but strong winds are preventing them from working safely at heights in some areas.
The company says it is prioritising outages that affect the largest number of customers and expects some areas to remain without power for some time.
“We recognise there are some customers who have dealt with recurring and extended outages in the past week,” a TasNetworks spokesperson said.
“We understand your frustration and do appreciate your ongoing patience and understanding as we do our best to restore supply.”
On Friday, TasNetworks crews responded to more than 85 outages and restored power to over 15,000 customers.
“Strong winds have blown vegetation and debris into the network and powerlines and poles have been brought to the ground,” the spokesperson said.
“Our crews are working hard to restore supply, but it’s not a quick fix, particularly with prevailing winds.”
With the weather system expected to linger into the weekend, TasNetworks says further outages and longer than usual delays are likely.
The Bureau of Meteorology yesterday warned the worst of the wild weather was yet to come.
Forecaster Luke Johnston said more strong winds, abnormally high tides and potentially damaging surf are all on the horizon.
“All the factors and the weather are really coming together Saturday evening, so that’s when we’ll have some of the strongest winds, the highest tides and potentially some of the bigger flooding events,” he said.
