By Hazard or fallen line
Stay back at least 8 metres and call 111 first. Geothermal areas have additional risks (steam, hot ground) that compound any electrical hazard.
Unison Networks
Rotorua, Reporoa, Mamaku
24/7 faults line. Same number as Hawke's Bay and Taupo: ask the operator to route you to the Rotorua control desk.
Coverage: Rotorua Central, Glenholme, Owhata, Ngongotaha, Hamurana, Mamaku, Reporoa, Kaharoa, Lake Tarawera, Lake Rotoiti fringe.
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 suburb. 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.
Rotorua-specific patterns
Why geothermal Rotorua has its own outage signature
The hydrogen sulphide gas that gives Rotorua its famous smell is also the country's worst electricity infrastructure enemy. Outage drivers here look nothing like the rest of NZ.
H2S corrosion
Whakarewarewa, Ohinemutu, Sulphur Point, Tikitere: hydrogen sulphide attacks copper conductors, brass switchgear and aluminium busbar at far higher rates than the rest of NZ. Equipment lifetimes are 40 to 60 per cent of the national average in the worst-affected suburbs.
Steam fog flashovers
Kuirau Park, Sulphur Point waterfront, Sulphur Bay: winter mornings produce dense geothermal steam that mixes with corroded sulphur deposits on insulators. Flashovers cause brief intermittent outages around the central lake.
Forest corridor faults
Mamaku, Kaharoa, Tarawera fringe: long overhead spurs through forest. Tree fall and high-wind branch contact drive multi-hour outages.
Practical Rotorua tip
Households in central Rotorua (Whakarewarewa, Ohinemutu, Sulphur Point) benefit more than most from a whole-house surge protector. The corroded local switchgear is more prone to switching transients than equipment in cleaner environments. Cost: NZ$200 to NZ$400 installed by a registered electrician, often recovered the first time a transformer fails on your feeder.
Unison damage claim, Rotorua
Equipment-failure claims have an above-average success rate in Rotorua because the corrosion-driven failures are well-documented in Unison's own asset records.
- 1Call 0800 286 476 and request the Rotorua incident reference.
- 2Submit the online claim form at unison.co.nz within 30 days.
- 3Attach electrician's report. If the cause was switching transient or transformer failure (the typical Rotorua signature), the claim path is shorter.
- 4Decision in 4 to 6 weeks.
Rotorua questions
Frequently asked questions: Rotorua outages
Unison Networks, on 0800 286 476, 24/7. Same number for Ngongotaha, Reporoa, Mamaku and the rural lakes district. For a hazard, dial 111 first.
Hydrogen sulphide gas from the geothermal field attacks copper conductors, brass and aluminium switchgear faster than anywhere else in NZ. Equipment lifetimes in central Rotorua (Whakarewarewa, Sulphur Point, Ohinemutu) are 40 to 60 per cent of the national average. Unison runs an accelerated replacement programme for the worst-affected feeders, but corrosion is a permanent operating condition, not a passing problem.
Single urban fault: 45 to 90 minutes. Suburban (Ngongotaha, Hamurana): 1 to 2 hours. Rural Mamaku or Kaharoa: 2 to 4 hours. Major event: 6 to 12 hours, occasionally longer in remote forest-corridor feeders. Rotorua Hospital and the water-pumping infrastructure are priority restoration.
Statistically, yes. Corroded switchgear produces a higher rate of switching transients than equipment in cleaner environments. Households in central Rotorua report more frequent low-grade surge damage (modems, smart TVs, heat pump controllers) than the NZ average. A whole-house surge protector at the switchboard substantially reduces the exposure: NZ$200 to NZ$400 installed.
Indirectly. The lines portion of your bill is the same Unison tariff that applies in Hawke's Bay and Taupo, set by the Commerce Commission via the Default Price-Quality Path. The accelerated equipment replacement caused by corrosion does feed into the regulated cost base over time, but no Rotorua-specific surcharge exists. Your retailer's c/kWh rate is independent of geography in any case.