We are on the cusp on another mini heatwave. Today is going to be 36 degrees C (96.8 degrees F) whilst tomorrow we are aiming for 39 degrees C (102.2 degrees F). Come Monday morning, we expect a "cool change" to the mid 30s, following by low 30s for the rest of the week. Finally, a few days of respite.
However, our power network is still in chaos from storms on Tuesday and Wednesday. Of 69 official Western Power outages in the south of Western Australia, only 4 of these areas have an estimated electricity restoration time. And don't hold your breath on that front. We were initially assured of a 10.30pm restoration time on Tuesday. We actually had power restored, without any fanfare, mid afternoon on Wednesday. By that time, the temperature inside our shuttered house with 6 star insulation was 36 degrees C. We had been informed of power restoration at 9pm, so we were lucky as I was beginning to feel very unwell.
Do any of the Grand Pooh-bahs at Western Power actually know what is going on? Or care? Methinks when a power crisis occurs, our heroes in head office spend a great deal of time and energy covering their own arses.
These blackouts happen with monotonous regularity, usually triggered by storms. Back in late January 2011, a massive storm front carved its way through the Wheatbelt, killed a young woman by electrocution in Geraldton and resulted in a five day power failure. We lost all our perishables that time and we lost much of our perishables this time, due to the heatwave conditions.
Has Western Power learnt nothing?
A similar scenario in South Australia some years back saw the destruction of multiple transmission towers during a major storm system. Some idiotic pollies tried to blame the resulting outages on wind farms...Ye Gods...
Here we go again. After the last major storm in Kalgoorlie during 2022, much heralded generators were installed in the town as a back-up. They failed due to "technical issues" on Wednesday. When I asked Michael how the hell that happened, he suggested they probably hadn't been maintained or started since installation...
My beloved husband actually knows rather a lot about the power grid, as well as how projects and systems work within these juggernaut organisations. He explained that the transmission towers have often been repurposed repeater stations and their integrity is all about the electrical wiring on each tower. Damage the wires on one tower or damage to the structure may cause a domino effect to the rest of the towers in that line. Brilliant.
In another startling revelation, Michael has also suggested that after the huge HUZZAH of a new project being implemented, such as the generators in Kalgoorlie, there may be no funding left for maintenance or fault resolution. Leading to to those pesky technical issues.
Do the powers that be know all this? You bet they do.
So, what will the Chiefs do this time? I understand there have been a lot of meetings this week in air-conditioned Perth with lots of huffing and puffing, whilst the poor emergency technicians are working around the clock trying to get the system back up and running.
In another stroke of genius, consumers have been asked to use fans until the temperature reach 41 degrees C, at which point they are useless for cooling. And airconditioners only at 27 degrees C. Apparently, we will all feel very comfortable if we follow these instructions...
Western Australia is rolling in cash, thanks to mining royalties. To expect us all to cope without power, mobile or internet coverage, and for some, water, is outrageous. Particularly for days.
If power poles fall over, their design needs to be altered. If power lines "clash", there must be a solution. If trees fall on power lines in heavily wooded suburbs, like Mundaring, then underground power must be implemented. If transmission towers are not strong enough to withstand storms, then they must have better structural integrity and have the ability to be individually isolated.
The southern Western Australian power grid needs a complete overhaul, which will take time and money. I am quite sure the technology to improve the grid exists, but there must be both political will and long-term perseverance.
Western Power's current assistance? Offer us all a $240 rebate instead of $120...To be credited to our power bills, not as immediate cash assistance...
Would somebody insert a large garden gnome up the bottom of Western Power please?!
Useful...Callum Timothy!
Or maybe the upper echelons could actually start being proactive...
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