PROVINCE IN DARKNESS.

Shannon News, 18 August 1925, Page 3

PROVINCE IN DARKNESS.

* TEMPORARY FAILURE AT MANGAHAO. LIGHT SOON RESTORED. Since the current was turned on from, the giant generators at Mangahao in October last, consumers in tne Hoirowhenua District have had a surprisingly good service so far as continuity is concerned. Only very occasionally has there been a failure of light and power and consequently, when the switches, do not respond to the consumer's will, the fact causes more comment than it should perhaps receive. Such, a break, occurred on Sunday, between six and seven o'clock. The light in Shannon flickered perceptibly about 6.20 p.m., grew dim and finally ceased to shine. After a. quarter of an hour of darkness, the bulbs glowed again and the light came on with unusual brilliance, but this was of the flash-in-the-pan order, for in a moment or two the illuminant vanished again and was off for twenty minutes. It was restored just before seven o'clock and continued steadily and efficiently thenceforth. . Advice yesterday shows that Shannon was not along in its darkness. The whole of the province, including Welling ton City, was cut off from the light for half an hour, the seat of the trouble being in the Mangahao pow-er-house itself.

Palmerston Borough switched over from the municipal power,to Mangahao current just before mid-night on Saturday, and when the break occurred, a return was made to the Borough supply, the period of darkness there only lasting eighteen minutes.

The trouble, which was not of a serious nature, occurred through the failure of a volage regulator and one turbine governor connected with the controlling apparatus, and not, as was freely rumoured, by the (breakdown of one of the big generators. The staff dealt with the emergency in a very efficient manner, and, as stated, light was restored within half an hour of the break, and by 8 o'clock everything was running normally, v ■ " '