AusNet has placed a strong focus on the Bairnsdale region as part of its $331 million investment in network maintenance and vegetation management over the past 12 months — work aimed at keeping local communities and the power network safe ahead of what’s expected to be a hot, dry summer.
AusNet executive general manager of distribution, Andrew Linnie, said preparing for summer and potential severe weather events was a key priority.
“We have been working all year to prepare the electricity network for what the authorities have told us is likely to be a hot, dry summer,” he said. “We’ve invested $273 million in network maintenance and replacement works, with an additional $59 million in vegetation management.”
In Bairnsdale and surrounding districts, that preparation has been significant. Over the past year, AusNet’s asset inspectors have completed 9818 pole inspections on the ground, while an additional 8375 poles were assessed by helicopter — a total of 18,193 inspections. This resulted in 4883 maintenance jobs being completed to strengthen local network safety.
AusNet’s vegetation management team also assessed 42,548 spans — the area between two power poles — in Bairnsdale and nearby towns. Maintenance was carried out on 6342 spans to ensure trees and branches remain safely clear of powerlines.
The extensive work follows warnings from Emergency Management Victoria (EMV) for communities to prepare early for an increased fire risk across drought-affected parts of the state, including Gippsland.
“Summer is a particularly challenging time for electricity customers,” Mr Linnie said. “On top of bushfire risk, summer often brings intense thunderstorms that can damage infrastructure.”
Mr Linnie added that AusNet’s community focus also extended beyond maintenance. “We’ve supported the creation of over 50 community resilience hubs within our network area in the past 12 months, with 20 now ready for use during emergency events,” he said.
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO PREPARE
Customers can amplify their prep with these simple steps:
– A – Always have a power outage plan and an outage kit ready during outages or extreme weather.
– M – Mobile and email shared with your electricity retailer so they can send you SMS and email updates during an outage.
– P – Practice using the Outage Tracker, so you know how to get information and updates during an outage.
If you’re a life support customer, make sure your emergency plan is up to date and ready to action if the power goes out.
