FRIDAY, January 9 is a day of extreme risk in Victoria, with fires already burning, extreme weather forecast and a catastrophic fire danger rating across large parts of the state.

AusNet customers are being urged to prepare for the possibility of power outages.

AusNet Executive General Manager Distribution, Andrew Linnie, said customer and community safety is our number one priority.

“We have put measures in place to help manage incidents if they occur, including additional crews, a helicopter and specialist engineers to work alongside our control room operators. All maintenance and planned outage works have been cancelled,” Mr Linnie said.

Given the extreme weather and the need to maintain safety, it may take longer to restore power as we carefully inspect power lines and verify they are safe before service is restored.

In areas where there is fire activity, AusNet crews will work with emergency services to get access to assess the damage, which may take some time.

Stay informed by being across Emergency Management Victoria’s warnings and advice messaging at www.emergency.vic.gov.au, while also being guided by emergency services.

If you are impacted by a power outage in the AusNet electricity network, you can find out more information, including when we estimate power will be restored, at outagetracker.com.au

Preparing for power outages
It’s important to be power prepared and know what to do before, during and after a power outage. The tips below will help reduce the impact on you and your family and keep you safe.

Before an outage
Make sure you have an emergency management plan and know what to do in the event of an emergency.

  • Put together an emergency kit in an easy-to-access place and let everyone know where it is. You should have battery-powered devices, such as a radio to receive important information during an outage, and a torch. Make sure you keep spare batteries in there, too.
  • Check to make sure that your medical supplies are fully stocked.
  • Make sure you can open your garage or fence manually so you can leave your home if the power goes out.
  • Make sure your phone is fully charged.
  • If you have an electric water pump, stock up on bottled water.

If you are a life support customer:

  • Make sure your management plan is up to date, and you are ready to put it into action
  • If you require oxygen, make sure the cylinders are filled and working.
  • See if you can visit a friend, family member or hospital when the power is out.
  • Ask a neighbour to check on you during the outage.
  • Keep all important phone numbers handy, for example, your doctor, the nearest hospital, the local taxi service, and AusNet’s emergency number 13 17 99.