Winds in Otago reached up to 150 km/h, causing widespread damage and lifting roofs. Video / Supplied / David Bull
Health Minister Simeon Brown has ordered an independent investigation into the cause of an “unacceptable” power outage at Nelson Hospital this morning.
The hospital was among tens of thousands of properties in the upper South Island that lost power as extreme winds and wild weather lashed much of thecountry today.
The Public Service Association (PSA) said the hospital’s power went out from 7.40am for about 45 minutes after a substation failure in Canterbury.
Health NZ said all patients were kept safe, and none were in operating theatres at the time.
The outage coincided with a historic mega-strike estimated to have involved more than 100,000 public service workers.
Several of those workers returned to Nelson Hospital to assist during the power outage.
Tens of thousands marched from Aotea Square in Auckland down Queen St to support health and education workers in the SOS - Save Our Services Strike. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
“What happened today was concerning, incredibly concerning, and I’ve asked for an independent investigation to give greater assurances that those systems are there,” Brown said.
“It’s unacceptable the back-up generator failed, but thankfully our hospitals have battery back-ups on top of that to ensure there is the ability to maintain life-preserving services when these things happen.”
He thanked the frontline staff who returned from the strike to help.
“These are hardworking healthcare professionals on the front line. These are good people who provide care for New Zealanders each and every day. And we are grateful for the work that they do.”
Nelson Hospital lost power for about 45 minutes this morning. Photo / Tim Cuff
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora executive regional director Pete Watson said investigations were under way into why the generator did not start straight away.
“[Health New Zealand] will take steps to prevent it from happening again.”
Back-up power kept key areas, such as the theatres and the intensive care unit, running.
“No patients were harmed during the power outage, and everyone remained safe. There were no patients in our operating theatres at the time.”
Staff followed emergency plans quickly.
Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.
