June 13, 2006

MEDIA STATEMENT

Emergency

Communities in the Waimate and McKenzie Districts are still cut off from the outside world, following yesterday’s storm. Canterbury’s Emergency Management Planner, Jon Mitchell says there is no way to contact those communities to find out what there needs may be, due to disruption to phones (landlines) cellphones and electricity. He says the areas worst affected are the McKenzie Basin and the Hakataramea Valley, and authorities are endeavouring to get information as to what is happening in those areas to determine people’s needs.

He says Waimate has limited landline, and cellphone access and is also not totally without power. However, that is not the case in the other affected areas. “There are currently no telephone connections or power in Twizel, Fairlie, Mount Cook or many of the farms in the McKenzie and Waimate districts,” he says.

He says however, Alpine Energy is working hard to get the power back on and Telecom is also trying to reinstate telecommunications.

ENDS

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