Darwin blackout closes schools and shuts down public service, cuts power to homes and businesses

Updated

Electricity has been restored to Darwin after a power failure lasting more than 12 hours caused the closure of schools, public transport and the public service.

The Northern Territory Government called the blackout an emergency and said an inquiry would be held into how it happened.

Power and Water Corporation has apologised to the tens of thousands of people left without power from Darwin to Katherine, 300 kilometres away.

It says the Darwin-wide "code black" was caused by a tripped circuit at Hudson Creek sub-station at Berrimah, in the city's east.

A spokeswoman says a safety switch also shut down the Channel Island station, the Territory's main source of electricity.

It left all of Darwin without power for several hours from about 1:00am (local time).

Power was restored to some northern suburbs including Malak, Nightcliff, Millner, Karama and others by about 10:00am, but mobile phone networks were still suffering outages.

Power was not restored to the Darwin CBD until after 1:30pm.

NT Police advised teachers to go to closed schools to supervise children.

They also ordered Territory buses off the roads because all of the city's traffic lights were not operating.

The Justice Department says the Darwin Magistrates Court and Supreme Court have been closed for the day.

A department spokeswoman says people on bail will have it extended until tomorrow.

The City of Darwin Council says libraries and the civic centre would be closed for the day.

The Shoal Bay waste management facility remained open and rubbish collection continued.

Call for compensation packages for businesses

The State Opposition is calling on the Government to come up with a full compensation package for business owners affected by the blackout.

Opposition Leader Delia Lawrie says the day-long power failure around the city has made it clear the network is not up to the standard the Government claims it is.

The Government says some compensation will be available, after applications are accessed.

This morning, the Northern Territory's Counter-Disaster Committee met to discuss a response.

Power and Water Minister Dave Tollner called on people to stay calm and safe on the roads because of the lack of functioning traffic lights.

While many city businesses opted to close for the day, those that stayed open were rewarded.

One of the only Darwin city pubs to remain open was The Deck bar.

At lunchtime, it was packed with people, including many bar staff from other hotels.

Also taking advantage of the day, a number of government media staff took the opportunity to take refreshment.

The ABC spent more than seven hours trying to contact Chief Minister Adam Giles for a comment on the blackout.

Power and Water Corporation spokesman Jim Bamber has promised an investigation into how the entire network was blacked out.

Some residents took to social media to express their frustration, given the high temperatures in the city overnight.

Entire city of Darwin been without power 4 nearly 7hrs now, nearly 100K people without electricity. Slept with a bottle of ice to stay cool. — Michael J Voukolos (@moggyvouk_82) March 11, 2014

Some people in hotels in Darwin were evacuated and spent a long, sleepless night waiting for the power to come back on.

"There was a warning saying there's been a power failure," one person told the ABC.

"We could stay in our room but there was a time limit that kept waking us up until we were told we'd have to evacuate on the ground floor.

"We've been sleeping on the floor of a conference room."

Business owners feel cost of outages

Deb Ellis owns two cafes in Coolalinga on the fringe of Darwin and said the blackout caused great expense to her businesses.

"We've had to send [staff] home but because they came in, we have to pay them," she said.

Sorry, this video has expired Video: Business battles to deal with power blackout (7pm TV News NT)

"It's going to be a big cost... at the moment, I hate to think about it."

Ms Ellis said her losses are unlikely to be covered by insurance and she will request compensation from Power and Water.

"My insurance policy says we have got to be without power 24 hours before they will pay," she said.

"We will definitely put a claim in with Power and Water."

Mr Tollner says Power and Water is insured and will consider claims for compensation on a case-by-case basis.

Gradual restoration of services

There were also reports that petrol stations were not selling any fuel because there was no power for their pumps.

There were no delays reported at Darwin Airport, which has back-up generator power.

Royal Darwin Hospital operated as usual.

For more information, Darwin residents can contact 1800 245 092.

Topics: schools, darwin-0800

First posted