Counties Energy urges residents to prepare for Tropical Cyclone Tam

Counties Energy is urging all residents to get prepared ahead of the forecasted impact from Tropical Cyclone Tam. Based on the latest MetService updates, severe weather is expected to affect the southern Auckland and northern Waikato regions overnight tonight and into the coming days.

The company’s storm response teams are on standby, with planning well underway across the business to respond to any potential large-scale impacts.

Counties Energy General Manager of Operations, Dale Carline, is encouraging the community to take the warnings seriously and be ready for extended outages with the worst of the weather forecast to hit our region later Wednesday night, with severe winds continuing through Thursday and into Friday.

“MetService has issued strong wind and heavy rain warnings from 9pm Wednesday,16 April to midnight Thursday for our region. This is a slow-moving system with potential for significant impacts. We’re anticipating gusts of around 80km/h Wednesday night, increasing up to 120km/h during Thursday, especially in the daylight hours. We’re asking residents to prepare now for the severe weather that’s expected over the next few days. The advice we’ve received is not to be complacent.”

“If we experience widespread outages, please be aware that restoration times may be prolonged, especially in rural areas. In some cases, power could be out for days if the network sustains major damage. Slips and fallen trees may block access, and complex repairs in challenging terrain can take time to resolve safely.”

Mr Carline is advising customers to act now. Those who rely on electricity for medical equipment should ensure their emergency backup plans are in place. Residents should also take practical steps like securing outdoor furniture, trampolines and any loose items that could become dangerous in high winds. If you rely on tank water, store additional water in advance. It’s also important to check your BBQ gas supply, fully charge devices such as phones and torches, and have spare batteries on hand. Most importantly, take a moment to check in on neighbours, especially the elderly and those living alone, to ensure they are also prepared.

Stay up to date on our Outage Hub, website and Facebook. Please check the power outage preparation tips and safety information on our website and download the Outage Hub app now.  Customers are encouraged to log any faults on the app as in extreme weather events, large scale faults can result in phone line queues. Be prepared by downloading the Outage Hub App now, save https://app.countiesenergy.co.nz/ onto the home screen of your smartphone.

Please treat all lines as live, stay well clear and report any downed or damaged lines or electrical equipment immediately on 0800 100 202 or via 111.  Don’t forget your animals – livestock should be moved out of paddocks with power lines.

In the event of large-scale power outages Counties Energy crews ‘make safe’ first, moving around the region isolating power to any damaged or downed lines and electrical equipment before moving to restore the network. Once essential services are restored, crews then work to repair widespread outages affecting significant numbers, followed by multiple property and businesses, then single properties.  Single properties and those with damage to privately owned service lines could be without power for some time if there is large-scale damage to the network and should be prepared for longer resolution times.  Owners of damaged privately owned service lines are recommended to use an approved contractor to repair their lines – which could be a faster resolution for these customers.

Outage preparation tips and what to do in a power outage can be found on the website – www.countiesenergy.co.nz/outages

For instructions on how to download the Outage Hub on your smartphone – https://countiesenergy.co.nz/outages/download-the-outage-hub/