"Reconnecting customers continues to be our number one priority, particularly those who have been without power for some time now. We have every available crew working on the remaining faults which range from broken power poles, downed lines, trees in lines and broken hardware.
"The aftermath of the storm means there are still slips blocking roads, which slows down work and makes it difficult for them to access sites. For this reason, helicopters and drones are being used to assess and plan restoration activities.
"In areas where there are multiple faults, the complexity of repairs means that it's taking much longer than expected to restore supply and we're unable to provide an estimation of when power will be back on.
"We know that this is extremely frustrating for people and we'd like to thank our customers for their continued patience and assure them that we are doing everything we can to reconnect them as quickly and safely as possible."
Road closures
As of Tuesday morning, Kauarapaoa Road is the only current remaining road closure in the Whanganui District Council boundary.
All other roads that were closed due to the weather have been opened to vehicle access, although clean-up of minor slips, vegetation, and drainage is continuing and people are asked to drive carefully and to please be patient if there are delays.
Whanganui District Council expects to have Kauarapaoa Road opened up to access from Rangitatau East Road by the end of Tuesday to free residents who will then be able to take the longer route out to the north.
The southern route out via Papaiti remains closed.
In the South Taranaki, Tangahoe Rd (cleared to 3.5km), Morea Rd (cleared to the 6km mark), Rawhitiroa Rd, Glen Nui Rd and Waiteika Rd all remain closed.
Waiteika Rd is expected to be open by the end of Wednesday.
Clean up
South Taranaki District Council works delivery manager Herbert Denton says Council is removing fees for storm-related greenwaste at all transfer stations across the District for the rest of the week.
Denton says the District experienced some pretty wild weather over the last two weekends and this would help get things tidied up in the aftermath.
The free disposal of storm-related greenwaste at the transfer stations lasts up until close of business on Sunday 20 February.
Denton says there are certain things which must not go in the greenwaste as they cannot be broken down.
"We accept untreated branches up to 10cm in diameter, general garden waste and leaves. We do not accept flax, cabbage tree leaves, treated timber, sawdust, rubble and soil in our greenwaste disposal."
