By Fallen line or hazard
Stay back at least 8 metres and dial 111 first. Ice-coated lines after a winter storm in the Cardrona Valley or on the Crown Range can drop silently, so assume any downed line is still 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 town. 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.
AE
Aurora Energy
Wanaka, Arrowtown and Frankton, one lines company
24/7 faults line. Same number as Dunedin and Central Otago: ask the operator to route to the Frankton depot for the lakes towns.
Coverage: Wanaka, Albert Town, Lake Hawea, Hawea Flat, Cardrona, Luggate, Arrowtown, Lake Hayes, Frankton, Quail Rise and Jacks Point.
Alpine network signatures
What drives Wanaka, Arrowtown and Frankton outages
An alpine network with extreme seasonal load swings behaves very differently from a flat coastal city. Three local patterns dominate the lakes and basin outage register.
Snow and freezing rain
Cardrona, the Crown Range, Treble Cone fringe and Hawea Flat: snow loading and ice on conductors cause sag and protective switch trips. Restoration takes hours when alpine access roads are closed by snow.
Nor'westerly downbursts
Frankton, Lake Hayes and Luggate: classic Otago nor'westers produce sudden violent gusts that can knock out feeders even in clear weather. Conductor clashes and isolated tree fall drive these events.
Construction-driven strikes
Queenstown Lakes is one of the fastest-growing districts in NZ. Underground cable strikes by contractors building new homes are a regular source of localised outages, especially around Three Parks, Northlake, Hawea Park and Quail Rise.
The seasonal-occupancy angle
Many lakes-district properties are baches and short-term rentals that sit empty for weeks. If your Wanaka or Arrowtown home is unoccupied during a winter outage, a frozen-pipe risk can outlast the power cut itself. Confirm your contents policy still applies during long vacancies, and consider a remote temperature alert so you know if a holiday home loses heat.
Surge damage after a Queenstown Lakes outage: how to claim
Aurora Energy does not publish a dedicated household damage-claim portal, so the realistic path for an appliance damaged by a power surge runs through your own insurance and your retailer. Construction-strike events, where a contractor caused the fault, are clearer-cut because liability sits with the third party.
- 1Call 0800 22 00 05 and ask for the incident reference, the fault start time and any known cause (cable strike, conductor clash, snow load).
- 2Lodge a contents insurance claim for the surge-damaged appliance, with photos, the original receipt and a registered electrician's report.
- 3Send a short written request to your electricity retailer too, quoting the incident reference, so they can pass it to Aurora if network negligence is suspected.
- 4Expect 4 to 8 weeks. Appliances under 5 years old with proof of purchase fare best. Snow and storm events are usually deemed weather, not negligence.
Queenstown Lakes questions
Frequently asked questions: Wanaka and Arrowtown outages
Aurora Energy, on 0800 22 00 05, 24 hours a day. The same number covers Wanaka, Albert Town, Hawea, Arrowtown, Lake Hayes and Frankton. For a hazard such as a fallen line, dial 111 first.
Check the live community map above for outages reported nearby, then confirm against Aurora's own live outage map, which lists active and planned outages by street. If neighbours are also off supply, the fault is on the network and Aurora crews are likely already aware.
Queenstown town has its own page. See our Queenstown power outage guide for the central Queenstown, Fernhill and Sunshine Bay detail. The lines company is the same, Aurora Energy on 0800 22 00 05, but the outage hotspots differ from the lakes and basin towns covered here.
Single urban fault in Wanaka or Frankton: 45 to 90 minutes. Suburban Arrowtown or Albert Town: 1 to 2 hours. Rural alpine spurs (Cardrona, Hawea Flat, Crown Range): 2 to 8 hours, occasionally longer in heavy snow when access roads close.
Yes. Aurora notifies affected properties ahead of planned maintenance, and the same upcoming work appears on the live outage map under planned outages. If someone in the household is medically dependent on power, register with your retailer so Aurora can give proactive notice and confirm a contingency plan.
Usually yes, for spoiled food (a sub-limit typically applies) and surge-damaged appliances. Check the policy wording for power-surge and spoiled-food terms. Households in seasonally-occupied baches and short-term rentals should confirm cover still applies when the property is unoccupied, as some policies exclude after a vacancy period. Support the claim with a written request to your retailer quoting the Aurora incident reference.
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.