As forecasted by the Bureau of Meteorology, Western Power is preparing for severe weather associated with a cold front and low pressure system expected over the weekend.
The storm is expected to arrive late Saturday afternoon, intensifying on Sunday evening into Monday morning. Locations that may be affected include the Perth Metro area, and Lower South West, South West districts, parts of the Mid West.
We would like to remind the community that if you see any damage to the network, it is important for your safety to stay 8 metres clear and make the safe call to Western Power on 13 13 51.
As part of our preparations, we have brought on additional operational field crews and staff, Network Operations controllers, call centre staff, and safety resources. We are also assessing and cancelling planned works as required.
Our priority during storm events is responding to reported hazards to ensure the safety of the community and our crews. This may mean if you are experiencing a power outage, you will see crews attend and make safe and leave without restoring power. Please be assured they will return to repair once hazards are safe.
Some repair work will need to be undertaken once the storm has passed to ensure safe use of the equipment needed i.e. elevated work platforms, which cannot be used during dangerous winds.
While significant work has been done to prepare the network for storms ahead of the winter season, common causes of safety hazards and power outages during inclement weather include tree branches and debris falling onto powerlines due to high winds, vehicles colliding with power poles and residential infrastructure such as trampolines flying into the network.
It’s important that the community are aware of the steps they can take to ensure safety around electricity infrastructure prior to storms.
These include:
- securing loose items around homes
- ensuring tree canopies on properties are not near poles or wires
- making the safe call to Western Power on 13 13 51 if they see any debris on powerlines.
Stay up to date by visiting westernpower.com.au/faults-outages and emergency.wa.gov.au