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December 2016 Gisborne Blackout

Date	December 12–13, 2016 (2016-12-12 – 2016-12-13)
Time	approx. 9:00 am NZDT
Duration	33 hours
Location	Gisborne District region
Type	Power outage
Cause	Plane crash
Deaths	2 (Pilot and passenger)

The December 2016 Gisborne blackout was a major power outage that occurred on the morning of 12 December 2016 and lasted for 33 hours.

The outage primarily affected the city of Gisborne but also affected the smaller towns of Wairoa and Tolaga Bay, leaving approximately 40,000 people without power. It was caused when a small topdressing aircraft crashed into the high-voltage transmission lines supplying the Gisborne District region, killing both pilot and passenger onboard.

Effects

The blackout caused massive disruptions to businesses and the community at large.

Ninety percent of the local businesses had to close, sending employees home for the day. However, businesses and petrol stations that had generators remained opened. Long lines formed at petrol stations as many people rushed in to fill their LPG bottles and vehicles in preparation for a night without electricity.

Gisborne Civil Defense brought in 10 generators from Tauranga and distributed them to high priority petrol stations, food outlets, and elder care facilities.

Cellular 3G and 4G data services went down, although limited voice and text service was still available in areas with cell towers running on backup battery power. Spark and 2degrees would bring in generators over the next few hours and restore full service.

Some local schools closed but Gisborne Hospital remained open and operational on generator power. Most GP practices remained open but people were advised to limit visits to emergencies due to limited access to electronic records.

Traffic lights in the business district stopped working but no accidents were reported.

Due to street lights being out, Gisborne police increased its street presence on the night of December 12 in order to deter opportunistic criminals. However, there were three reported burglaries in the 24 hour period following the initial blackout.

Cause

On the morning of December 12, it is understood that pilot George Anderson and passenger Robert Solouota, both Gisborne locals, were spreading fertilizer on a remote farm area at Hangaroa (north of Wairoa, west of Gisborne) in a P-750 aircraft when they struck the high-voltage transmission lines at approximately 9:00 am.

After striking the lines, the aircraft continued to fly on for 2.5 kilometers before crashing in rugged terrain. Within the hour, a major search effort was launched and the local search and rescue helicopter crew found the burning aircraft wreckage and determined that the two men died at the scene.

A formal investigation by the Civil Aviation Authority is still under way.

Restoration and Aftermath

At approximately 6:00 pm on 13 December, 33 hours after the initial blackout, power was restored to the region. However, the local network provider, Eastland Group, said the power would only be temporary while it made plans to make permanent repairs to the damaged lines. It announced a planned 8-hour outage for 18 December 2016. Power was turned off at 6:00 am on 18 December and permanently restored at approximately 11:00 am, three hours ahead of schedule.

The blackout has prompted calls from the public to build a second transmission line to the Gisborne District to avoid future blackouts of this kind. In response, Eastland Group said it would likely cost at least $75 million and could result in higher domestic power bills.