14 September 2006 00:00 Central Networks issues urgent safety message after vandals damage Notts electricity network, interrupt supplies
Electricity distribution company Central Networks has issued an urgent warning for people to stay away from its equipment after an attack by vandals on a substation left more than 1,000 customers in Shirebrook without power.
Engineers worked into the night after supplies were lost on Tuesday from about noon, with power restored to the majority of customers shortly before 7pm on Tuesday. Around 100 customers had to wait until Wednesday for their electricity to come back on.
The power cut was caused by vandals who forced their way into a substation and damaged electricity cables.
Phil Wilson, Customer Operations Manager with Central Networks, said: “Tampering with our network is a very dangerous thing to do and, in addition to inconveniencing all of the people who lost their power supply, these vandals risked serious injury to themselves.
“Only our qualified engineers should enter substations or touch any equipment, and anyone else who recklessly commits an act of vandalism is risking their life.”
Central Networks, which is part of E.ON UK, urges members of the public who see anyone engaged in suspicious behaviour around overhead power lines or electricity substations to contact the police immediately.
Ends
Notes to editors:
• Central Networks, which is part of E.ON UK, is the new name for Midlands Electricity and East Midlands Electricity. The company brings power to 4.9 million customers across the East and West Midlands through 133,000km of underground and overhead cables and via almost 97,000 substations;
• Central Networks covers an area from the Peak District in the north to parts of Bristol in the south, and from the Welsh Borders to the Lincolnshire Coast.
For further information contact:
Jane Branscombe on 024 7618 3681
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