Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
FOR the second time in three days, Calala resident Tracey Mackenzie woke up struggling to breathe.
Wednesday’s power outage, which struck more than 1200 homes in Calala and Loomberah, had caused her sleep apnoea machine to switch off.
The machine provides a continuous airflow to Ms Mackenzie, who suffers from a condition that causes her to become unable to breathe properly as she sleeps.
“It’s horrible – one minute I was in a sound sleep, next minute I was struggling for breath,” Ms Mackenzie said.
“I’ve got a mask on my face. It has got to be sealed tight on your face and keeps the air in.
“I panicked, I woke up with a start.”
Local grandmother Amy-Lee Jones said her family had taken the step of buying an uninterruptable power supply, after her young grandson’s machine was also cut off.
The blackout was “frightening” for the family, who feared he would be unable to remove the mask when he was struggling to breathe.
The power outage comes on the heels of a blackout on Monday which inconvenienced locals, as reported by The Leader on Tuesday.
Essential Energy northern community relations manager David Crough said local bats were to blame for the outages, which had occurred at roughly the same time – between 5.20am and 6am – each time.
He said the power provider had seen similar cases across the New England North West as transient bat populations made temporary homes in trees near powerlines.
“While this is not unusual, it’s certainly frustrating for all involved when the colonies cause unplanned power interruptions,” Mr Crough said.
The Calala and Loomberah areas are supplied with electricity by a powerline which runs from Essential Energy’s East Tamworth zone substation, through the King George V Ave area, where the bats rest during the day.
Essential Energy is reviewing energy loads in Tamworth and exploring options for reducing the impact of large numbers of bats on the power network, including temporarily reconfiguring the electricity network and redesigning a section of the powerline.
Mr Crough urged customers who relied on a continuous supply of power for medical equipment to ensure they had a back-up plan, in case of a blackout.
“We appreciate customers’ patience and understanding until the bats depart for their next location,” he said.
Tomorrow a meeting will take place with Tamworth Regional Council and the Office of Environment and Heritage in the hopes of developing a bat action plan for the area.
A longtime resident of Panorama Rd at Calala has also called on authorities to solve the bat problem – and not just because of the health concerns posed by bat droppings and the smell created by the colony.
Jenny Peberdy says the problem has now become a critical one for the services being interrupted. The two blackouts this week posed a danger for people relying on essential services for health reasons, Mrs Peberdy said.
“When it’s affecting between 1500 and 2000 people, it is significant,” she said.