Gumleaf
July 6th, 2010, 11:40 PM
14:05 AEST Wed Jul 7 2010
By Miles Godfrey
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/7924387/power-restored-to-northern-sydney
NSW Premier Kristina Keneally has come under fire for a massive blackout that cut power to 50,000 homes across northern Sydney.
Trains were delayed and traffic lights blacked out, many on major road arteries, causing commuter chaos on a wet winter morning.
Opposition infrastructure spokesman Brad Hazzard has accused successive Labor leaders of failing to upgrade infrastructure and ripping cash out of energy firms, preventing them from improving the grid.
"It is very unpleasant to wake up on a cold winter morning in Sydney without your electricity," Mr Hazzard told reporters in Sydney on Wednesday.
"Kristina Keneally really needs to explain how she now is going to deliver the necessary infrastructure that she and her government have failed to deliver over 16 years."
Mr Hazzard accused the Labor government of taking $11.4 billion of dividends out of the state's electricity system, and failing to ensure infrastructure improvements were carried out.
In Wednesday morning's blackout, electricity was cut to homes and businesses about 5am (AEST) and restored about 9.30am.
It's believed to have stemmed from a small fire at a substation in Dural owned by TransGrid, which manages electricity transmission infrastructure and supplies EnergyAustralia.
"We do believe the fire is related to the fault," a Transgrid spokesman told AAP.
A spokeswoman for EnergyAustralia denied the blackout was a result of poor electricity infrastructure.
Asked if the network was dilapidated and in need of repair, she said: "I don't think that's the case.
"I know a heck of a lot of money's been pumped into the electricity networks, certainly in EnergyAustralia's network and I know we're spending another $8 billion over the next five years."
The spokeswoman said the company got the all-clear from TransGrid to return power at 9am.
"We progressively returned power to Berowra, Hornsby and Pennant Hills," she said, adding that EnergyAustralia did not blame TransGrid for the fault.
"We understand the electricity network is an extremely complex and interconnected machine.
"They worked as quickly as they could to identify the problem and to find a solution."
Up to 60 sets of traffic lights were out of action during the blackout, causing chaos on roads including the Pacific Highway and Pennant Hills Road.
Police were called in to direct traffic at major intersections.
Trains on the North Shore, Northern and Newcastle lines were delayed until backup power kicked in, and ticket machines at stations were out of action.
© AAP 2010
By Miles Godfrey
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/7924387/power-restored-to-northern-sydney
NSW Premier Kristina Keneally has come under fire for a massive blackout that cut power to 50,000 homes across northern Sydney.
Trains were delayed and traffic lights blacked out, many on major road arteries, causing commuter chaos on a wet winter morning.
Opposition infrastructure spokesman Brad Hazzard has accused successive Labor leaders of failing to upgrade infrastructure and ripping cash out of energy firms, preventing them from improving the grid.
"It is very unpleasant to wake up on a cold winter morning in Sydney without your electricity," Mr Hazzard told reporters in Sydney on Wednesday.
"Kristina Keneally really needs to explain how she now is going to deliver the necessary infrastructure that she and her government have failed to deliver over 16 years."
Mr Hazzard accused the Labor government of taking $11.4 billion of dividends out of the state's electricity system, and failing to ensure infrastructure improvements were carried out.
In Wednesday morning's blackout, electricity was cut to homes and businesses about 5am (AEST) and restored about 9.30am.
It's believed to have stemmed from a small fire at a substation in Dural owned by TransGrid, which manages electricity transmission infrastructure and supplies EnergyAustralia.
"We do believe the fire is related to the fault," a Transgrid spokesman told AAP.
A spokeswoman for EnergyAustralia denied the blackout was a result of poor electricity infrastructure.
Asked if the network was dilapidated and in need of repair, she said: "I don't think that's the case.
"I know a heck of a lot of money's been pumped into the electricity networks, certainly in EnergyAustralia's network and I know we're spending another $8 billion over the next five years."
The spokeswoman said the company got the all-clear from TransGrid to return power at 9am.
"We progressively returned power to Berowra, Hornsby and Pennant Hills," she said, adding that EnergyAustralia did not blame TransGrid for the fault.
"We understand the electricity network is an extremely complex and interconnected machine.
"They worked as quickly as they could to identify the problem and to find a solution."
Up to 60 sets of traffic lights were out of action during the blackout, causing chaos on roads including the Pacific Highway and Pennant Hills Road.
Police were called in to direct traffic at major intersections.
Trains on the North Shore, Northern and Newcastle lines were delayed until backup power kicked in, and ticket machines at stations were out of action.
© AAP 2010