Fire safety

Fires, including bushfires, can damage and destroy vital community infrastructure such as the electricity network. Depending on the damage, it may take days or longer to complete repairs to electrical infrastructure.

We advise people to follow three important steps to be prepared:

1. Be Safe. Your health and safety is the priority.
2. Be Smart. If the power goes out, you’ll want to stay connected.
3. Be Ready. Have a plan in place for back-up power.

But if a major fire or bushfire is threatening, then follow these tips to know what to do immediately before, during and after the event in relation to electricity safety.

Before the fire

• If you are evacuating then do so early as fallen or sagging powerlines affected by high temperatures can increase safety risks on the roads.
• If you choose to stay in the property, be aware you may lose power, even if your home or business isn’t directly affected by the fires.
• Check your emergency plan and kit.
• Know where a safe evacuation point is planned within your community.

During a fire

• If the fire is near powerlines, stay at least 25 metres away from the powerlines.
• Beware of powerlines sagging lower and swaying wider than usual due to high temperatures and winds.
• Beware of burned trees which may threaten to fall causing risks for both people and powerlines.
• Beware of fallen powerlines and anything in contact with them. Call us to report it immediately on 13 20 99.
• If your vehicle comes into contact with a fallen powerline or power pole, remain in the vehicle if it is safe to do so and call 000 immediately. See how to make an emergency escape below for more information.

After the fire

• If you evacuated, then check emergency services information to see if it is safe to return.
• Check our outage map for the estimated time for power will be back on.
• Report fallen powerlines, network damage, fires or trees contacting powerlines immediately on 13 20 99 or call 000 if the situation is life-threatening.
• If water used for fire fighting entered your property then be careful and make sure it is safe before turning appliances back on.
  • If any switches do not turn on, or automatically shut off, this indicates the wiring may be affected.
  • You’ll need a licensed electrician to test our wiring and appliances.
• If you have rooftop solar panels, then contact your installer or a licensed electrician to check the condition of these panels before turning the system on.

Network response

• We monitor fire reports closely to make sure our crews are safe and ready for anything.
• We make sure high priority maintenance is completed.
• Field work may be reduced leading up to the event so crews are fresh and able to be called in at all hours.
• Resources including field crews, network operators, Customer Service Agents and equipment are on stand-by for immediate response.
• We’ll coordinate with other emergency services to clear fallen trees on roads and for directions to ensure it is safe for our crews to travel into affected areas and to respond.
• Our focus will be on reducing the numbers of customers affected and restoring power as quickly and safely as possible.
• We’ll send messages to customers via SMS if there is a power outage and including an estimate time of restoration. Initially, this estimate is dependent on a site assessment by our crews.
• We’ll keep our outage map and list up to date.
• Our Mobile Engagement and Response Vehicle (fondly known as MERV) may be deployed into affected communities. This provides an on-the-ground place to talk with our people about power supplies and offers 20 charging lockers for small devices like mobile phones as well as cup of hot tea.