Breaking News Today – Brisbane Suburbs Without Power
Twenty inner Brisbane suburbs are currently without power. Authorities are not sure when services will be restored and a single person is still missing. It may be Friday or Saturday before some areas are back up and running, but residents should prepare for the worst case scenario. Power is outage is affecting many people across the city and the Gold Coast, but not everyone is affected. Some parts of Brisbane may remain without power until Thursday night or Friday.
A massive outage has left parts of Brisbane’s south-east without power. CS Energy is attempting to restore power to all affected suburbs. They are also reviewing the power plant. The outage is expected to continue into the weekend and affect more than a million customers. Train services and elevators are unaffected, but some customers are complaining of inconvenience. In the meantime, residents can expect to pay high electric bills for some time.
Queensland energy company Energex has warned that some people may still be without power for weeks. The company estimates more than 43,000 homes remain without power after former cyclone Oswald. The company says it has restored power to almost half of its customers, but there are still major problems in parts of Oxley, Mount Nebo, and Mount Sylvia. Energex has advised that it may take up to a week for all affected areas to be back up and running.
Fortunately, the government is beginning a pilot program in Western Australia to install underground power lines in suitable areas. Ultimately, it aims to make all suburbs without power free of overhead power lines by 2010.
AEMO has issued a $300 per megawatt-hour price cap to help power companies meet customer demand. The AEMO cap is aimed at limiting the market shock of rising wholesale power prices. AEMO has directed some power companies to switch on additional units during peak periods, which has helped ease the supply crunch. However, the Queensland electricity network operator has urged consumers to reduce power consumption during these times, as well as to limit their usage during peak hours.
