POWER CUTS EXPECTED NEXT WEEK IN BOROUGH

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 15, Issue 17, 31 March 1950, Page 5

POWER CUTS EXPECTED NEXT WEEK IN BOROUGH

With the power position throughout the North Island made more acute by shortage of water in the main lakes Whakatane along with other areas has been warned to cut consumption by at least 10 per cent. To do this the electrical engineer, Mr F. Lysaght, said yesterday that the only course open to make the reduction was by way of cuts and, he thought, these would probably be introduced in the borough next week.

Commenting on the position yesterday Mr Lysaght warned that the position was desperate, moire so than most people thought. The Bay of Plenty Power Board and the borough had each been warned to reduce consumption by 10 per cent. For the borough this was a serious thing, he pointed out. Whakatane was already 10 per cent over its allocation so to make the required saving as ordered by the electricity controller, borough consumers would have to cut consumption by 20 per cent. ' “The only way to make this saving appears to be by cuts,” Mr Lysaght added. The position had been pointed out by the controller, _who had sent an urgent telegram ordering the reduction, the electrical engineer said. The borough was being covered by an inspector at the present time but rigid cuts seemed to be the only way out. He remarked that Te Aroha had started cuts and Whakatane would probably follow suit.

The worst feature about the present position at Whakatane is that the town is now using more power than last year’fe winter consumption.