DISRUPTION OF POWER

Press, Volume C, Issue 29513, 13 May 1961, Page 9

DISRUPTION OF POWER

Kite Tangled In Lines

(N.Z. Press Association) AUCKLAND. May 12. A boy's kite which became tangled with power lines is believed to have caused a power failure which plunged 70,000 people on the North Shore into darkness for more than two hours this evening. Department stores closed, other stores carried on by candlelight and thousands returning home from work faced cold dinners. Most of the Waitemata Electric Power Board district from Silverdale to Northcote was without power from about 6 p.m. until 8.30 p.m. The first failure of the day occurred at Devonport where the power was off for a half an hour from 3.30 p.m. Engineers later found a boy’s kite straddling the power lines between the Takapuna and Belmont substations. Medal On Line A board engineer said that a medal attached to the tail of the kite probably caused the failures. Linesmen were expected to work through the night on two lines still out of order between Albany and Takapuna. The North Shore competitions festival was continued by the light of candles and torches. Shop owners were settling down for what appeared to be an unusually busy Friday night's business when the power failed. Chaos followed in many cases when shops were plunged into complete darknes. Two Takapuna shops closed their doors soon after 6 p.m. and reopened about 8 p.m.