SA Power Networks has reconnected Hawker and Leigh Creek to the state’s electricity network, after a destructive storm swept through the region in October 2024.
This milestone on Saturday 15 February 2025 marks the end of a significant effort to reconnect communities impacted by the storm – which caused damage surpassing the state-wide blackout event in 2016 and saw 32 transmission towers downed and widespread network disruption, including to BHP’s Olympic Dam mining operation.
While most customers were reconnected within 24 hours, around 1600 customers in Hawker, Leigh Creek and Quorn were left without power due to the extensive damage to the distribution and transmission networks.
SA Power Networks overcame significant logistical and technical challenges to set up temporary generation to provide a power supply to these communities.
Quorn remained on backup generation for two weeks, while Hawker and Leigh Creek continued to rely on generation as restoration efforts on ElectraNet’s damaged transmission network progressed.
SA Power Networks Generation Specialist, Barry Murphy (affectionately known as Spud), led the operation and was supported by teams in Port Augusta, Elizabeth, and Metro South.
“Deploying generation to three separate sites for an extended period presented many challenges, but our team’s collaboration was key. Over the past three months, staff from depots all over the state made themselves available to temporarily re-locate to Hawker and Leigh Creek to support our efforts,” Mr Murphy said.
A planned outage took place on Saturday 15 February 2025, between 5am and 8am, to ensure the safety of crews working to disconnect temporary generators and re-establish the network supply.
SA Power Networks Operations Manager, Chris Bennett, said, “We understand the inconvenience these outages have caused, and we thank customers for their patience and support over the past few months. Our priority is to ensure a safe and efficient power restoration process.
“Despite the difficulties, the collaboration between our teams, the South Australian Government, and the local communities has been outstanding,” Mr Bennett said.
“We are proud to have been able to provide power to Hawker and the surrounding areas, and we continue to work with the government and ElectraNet to ensure the long-term security of the region’s electricity supply.”
