Customers urged to prepare for strong winds

May 11, 2018 

Ausgrid is urging customers to make sure their homes are prepared for potential severe weather and damaging winds over the next few days.

Chief Operating Officer Trevor Armstrong said wind gusts of up to 80 kilometres per hour are forecast for Sydney for Friday afternoon and possibly as high as 100 kilometres per hour in Sydney’s south on Saturday.

“When we see damaging winds like this they can lead to disruptions across the network as they can cause powerlines to snap or branches and trees to fall on overhead wires. “A quarter of all outages in our network are caused by trees contacting powerlines but we work to restore power safely and as quickly as possible”, Mr Armstrong said.

As part of our routine planning for events like this we are reviewing staffing levels to make sure we have extra crews on standby to help if needed.

Ausgrid is also asking customers to take some simple precautions at home. “It’s a good idea to take a few minutes and put away any loose outdoor items like tools, play equipment and garden furniture before the strongest winds arrive. “Securing those items means they won’t blow away during strong winds and damage powerlines or property”, he said.

It’s important to stay well clear or any storm debris or damaged trees as they can hide fallen wires. “If you spot fallen powerlines always assume they are live, do not go near them, stay safely back and report them to us so we can make them safe”, he said.