By Fallen line or hazard
Stay back at least 8 metres, keep clear of standing water near a downed line, and call 111 first. A line dropped by a southerly on a Waitaki Valley feeder can still be live, so treat every fallen conductor as energised.
Help your neighbours
Live community map & report a power cut
If neighbours are also without power, the fault is on the network, not your switchboard. The map below shows outages reported by other Selectra readers across New Zealand in real time. Use it as a first diagnostic before you call: if an active outage is already plotted near you, crews likely know about it. A short anonymous report helps others see what is happening in your area. It does not replace the call to your lines company.
Immediate danger
Fallen power line, sparks, burning smell or smoke? Call 111 before reporting anything else. Stay back at least 8 metres from any downed line.
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Report a power cut
Thanks: your report is recorded
Now make the official call to your lines company so a crew is dispatched. For a fallen line or any hazard, dial 111 first.
Who fixes the fault
Your lines company and its 24/7 fault line
Only the lines company that owns the poles and wires in your street can dispatch a crew. Call the number below if your report shows the outage is on the network.
Network Waitaki
Oamaru and the whole Waitaki district
24/7 faults line. Network Waitaki is community owned, with its depot in Oamaru, and the same number covers the town and the Waitaki Valley feeders.
Coverage: Oamaru, Weston, Kakanui, Maheno, Hampden, Palmerston, Duntroon, Kurow, Otematata, Omarama, the lower Waitaki Valley.
Waitaki network signatures
What drives Oamaru and Waitaki outages
A coastal town joined to a long hydro valley produces a distinctive outage profile. Three patterns dominate the Network Waitaki register.
Coastal southerlies
Oamaru, Kakanui and the limestone coast: southerly storms off the Pacific bring wind and salt that age overhead lines and bring down branches. These are the most common cause of urban North Otago cuts.
Waitaki Valley feeders
Kurow, Duntroon and Otematata: long overhead spurs run up the hydro valley to small inland settlements. Distance and exposed terrain mean a valley fault takes crews longer to reach and restore than anything in Oamaru town.
Inland snow and frost
Omarama and the higher ground: a hard southerly snap can drop snow on the inland feeders, loading conductors and tripping protection. These events are less frequent than on the coast but slower to clear.
A North Otago tip
If you live up the Waitaki Valley on a long rural feeder, plan for outages to last longer than in central Oamaru, and keep a torch, a charged power bank and a battery radio ready. Households that depend on a pump for water should keep enough on hand to ride out a multi-hour cut.
If a power surge damages an appliance in Oamaru
Network Waitaki does not run a dedicated consumer damage-claim portal, so surge-damaged appliances are normally handled through your own cover rather than the lines company. Here is the path North Otago households use.
- 1Call 0800 440 220 and ask for the incident reference, the start time and any recorded cause. You will need this if you make a claim.
- 2Lodge the claim through your home contents insurance, the usual route for surge damage. Keep photos, the original receipt and a registered electrician's report.
- 3You can also raise it in writing with Network Waitaki at [email protected], and notify your electricity retailer with the incident reference, in case the fault is later attributed to network negligence.
- 4Expect 4 to 8 weeks. Appliances under 5 years old, with a receipt and an electrician's report, fare best. Storm and snow events are usually treated as weather, not negligence.
Oamaru questions
Frequently asked questions: Oamaru outages
Network Waitaki, the North Otago lines company, on 0800 440 220, 24 hours a day. The same number covers Weston, Kakanui, Palmerston and the Waitaki Valley towns of Kurow and Omarama. For a hazard such as a downed line, dial 111 first.
Check the community map above to see whether a neighbour has reported a cut, then open the Network Waitaki live outage page for the official list of current and planned outages. If your neighbours still have power, the fault is more likely your own switchboard or main fuse, so check those before you call.
Kurow, Duntroon and Otematata sit on long overhead feeders running up the hydro valley to small inland settlements. Crews have far further to travel than in the compact Oamaru grid, and the terrain is more exposed, so a valley fault routinely takes longer to find and restore.
A single fault in central Oamaru: typically 30 to 90 minutes. Coastal Kakanui and the urban fringe during a southerly storm: 1 to 3 hours. Waitaki Valley spurs out to Kurow or Omarama: 2 to 6 hours, longer in snow or when access is affected.
Yes. Network Waitaki gives advance notice of planned maintenance, usually by letter or email, and lists upcoming work on its outage page. If someone in the household depends on mains power for medical equipment, register as a medically-dependent customer with your retailer so the network can give you proactive notice.
Network Waitaki does not run a dedicated damage-claim portal, so surge damage is normally claimed through your home contents insurance. Keep the incident reference, photos, the original receipt and a registered electrician's report, raise it in writing with the network and notify your retailer too. Allow 4 to 8 weeks. Weather-driven storm and snow outages are usually excluded.
Nearby outage guides
Power outages across Otago
Same storm front, different lines company. If the cut reaches a neighbouring town, here is the right 24/7 fault line and live map for the rest of Otago.
See the regional hub: Otago power outages, or browse every New Zealand region.