Cold residents cross and confused

Some Manawatu residents are angry, confused and cold after a powercut blew their heating and appliances.

A cluster of Ashhurst families are sleeping in chilly houses following Wednesday’s powercut, which affected about 100 homes on Cambridge St, Wills Cres, and Wyndham St.

Wills Cres resident Melissa Gabbott said she was frustrated by the situation.

‘‘My kids can’t shower. They have no heating and they can’t eat. How fair is that?’’

She said she and her two children, aged 9 and 13, spent Wednesday night in a cold house, which cannot be heated following the powercut.

‘‘It’s the actual appliances that are blown. They are screwed and I no longer have heating, hot water and power to look after my children, and I don’t know who to speak to to get it fixed.’’

Powerco network operations manager Phil Marsh said the power cut happened during work on a transformer.

He said an electrician was visiting customers and affected properties.

Gabbott said she was unable to pay for an electrician upfront. She had also just cancelled her joint contents insurance, because she was in the middle of a divorce.

Gabbott spoke to her power company and Powerco, and technicians from Powerco had visited her home to check the fuse box.

A Powerco staff member told her the problem was listed as urgent. But she was told that the whole process could take up to 20 days.

The busted heating equipment needed to be replaced now, not in the following days or weeks, she said.

‘‘I can’t let my kids freeze or starve.’’

Cambridge St resident Fiona Harker said her fridge, freezer, drier, phone, dishwasher and microwave had all stopped working.

Harker said she was ‘‘panicked and stressed’’ on Wednesday, after thinking she would lose the food she bought for her daughter’s sixth birthday this weekend.

However, she had been given a small bar fridge to use and left the rest of the food with friends.

Harker has two children and said they were lucky because they had a fire and were able to heat their house.

‘‘I am very aware that there are other residents that don’t [have heating]. I feel for them.’’

She said she was hoping the insurance process would be fast and would able to cover the costs of the broken appliances.

Wyndham St resident Mark Davey said he had been frustrated by the situation on Wednesday.

Having to sleep in a cold house that night was ‘‘beyond a joke’’.

However, Powerco had since been in contact and Davey said it was likely his insurance company would foot the bill for the broken appliances.