The Aussie town being crippled by power blackouts – forcing residents to do the unthinkable

Angry residents of an inland town experiencing constant power outages are about to meet the Prime Minister and demand answers for the debilitating power outage.

NSW Premier Chris Minns will travel to Broken Hill for a week on Thursday after heavy thunderstorms swept away power lines and faulty generators left 20,000 people in the area with minimal electricity.

The Prime Minister has tried to blame the previous government’s privatization of electricity infrastructure, but critics say not enough has been done to keep backup systems online.

The disruption has already spoiled tonnes of food, hampered Year 12 exam preparations and even postponed a mental health awareness tour for swimming legend Kyle Chalmers.

Mr Minns will face disgruntled locals if he moves to the region, Broken Hill Mayor Tom Kennedy believes.

“A lot of people in Broken Hill are just not happy as we shouldn’t have had to go through this,” he told ABC Radio.

“There should have been two generators that would have ensured that Broken Hill retained its power supply, as well as the remote areas that were without power for several days at different times during this disaster.”

Instead, one gas-fired generator has been offline for almost a year and the other was shut down on Monday due to high demand for power due to the warm weather.

The second generator was operational Wednesday, but community demand exceeds capacity, leading to brownouts.

“It’s easy to say, ‘Don’t turn on the air cooler’, then it becomes 37 degrees Celsius, 38 degrees Celsius and people just can’t stand it,” Cr Kennedy said.

Transgrid said additional generators were installed in the city on Tuesday evening and more units are on the way, while a rotating 24-hour shift to repair power lines began on Wednesday.

Workers have also returned to the local mine, which was closed to reduce demand on the network.

A natural disaster has been declared, as well as an electricity emergency, allowing ministers to take additional measures to resolve the problem.

But subsidies or compensation for homes and businesses are not yet offered.

“The feeling on the ground is not great,” Nationals leader Dugald Saunders said after a visit on Wednesday.

“Every second person I’ve spoken to tells me they’ve had to throw away hundreds of dollars worth of food, yet there is no clarity on how to help families already facing a cost-of-living crisis.”

The Prime Minister on Wednesday blamed the rolling blackouts and brownouts on the former coalition government’s $10 billion sale of the high-voltage transmission network in 2021.

“None of this would have been a problem if the previous government had not privatized it,” he told parliament.

Workers repair the power grid after storms wiped out power lines. (Provided by Transgrid/AAP PHOTOS)

“When something similar happened (in 2009) and it was owned by the NSW Government, excess power was immediately turned on.”

Operator Transgrid will face an independent investigation into its maintenance standards and possible breaches of its license.

The outage comes at a bad time for local Year 12 students as they sit for HSC exams.

Last-ditch study sessions are held every evening at Broken Hill High School to reduce stress for senior students.

“While the energy suppliers are in the process of abolishing the tax and the children have no certainty of electricity at home, we continue to offer it,” director Ross Mackay told AAP.

School kitchens have also been made available to families who struggle to cook at home.

Schools are expected to submit a special application on behalf of HSC students.

It’s another headache for the city’s students after an extensive mold outbreak forced the demolition of Willyama High School.

The 570 students were initially spread across the city before a series of shipping containers were built on the grounds of Broken Hill High School in April.