POWER FAILURES

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 715, 15 July 1929, Page 10

POWER FAILURES

BOARD MEMBER WANT? INFORMATION 5 LOSSES BY DAIRY Advancing the idea that members were really the director, of the concern, Mr. G. Trevithick r, quested, at this morning's mtrn ing of the Waitemata PoJe Board, that members should be acquainted with the cause of , to pages in the supply of eleetrh power when they occur. * Mr. Trevithick said that when ti .. lights failed he was rung by ers for an explanation and could uo give one. He thought that the boarc engineer should instruct somene the failures occurred to inform th' members of the board of the catjgJ and when they were likely to kj remedied, if possible. Members »- 0 „p then be able to give replies to i nqu „ ers. The engineer, Mr. F. J. H. Wii Mo All the stoppages so far have beea Government stoppages aud we can w very little information from the Got. ernment at the time. The Rev. W. P. Rankin said he w, s in much the same position as M r Trevithick. Mr. W. B. Darlow asked if the peopie would be any the wiser if thev were informed that the stoppage a Government stoppage. When Mr. G. O'Halloran suggested that the engineer could spend his time better by attending to the fault than informing board members, Mr. Trevith ick replied: "Are we directors or are we not?” He did not want his request made a joke of, and thought that member should know what was being done when a stoppage occurred. He asked if he was to sit in darkness when the lights failed and wonder if it was a Government stoppage. The chairman, Mr. J. W. Hayden, said that the board would see wha: could be done. Hq stated that the man in charge of the Takapuna station would be pleased to know from members when the lights failed to ascertain whether it was a local or general stoppage. The discussion then lapsed. A letter was received from the Hauraki Dairy stating that the failure ot the power of June 19 had caused damage to its plant which cost £ls 9s 6d to repair. In August, 1925, another, failure resulted in cost for repairs oi £l6 14s Sd. The company stated that the inconvenience and loss, besides tho cost of repairs, was very large as it had been nearly a week on each occasion without cooling and had had to buy ice. The letter said that stoppages were becoming too numerous, and the board was asked for assistance in the payment of repair costs and an assurance of better service in the future. The letter was referred to the engineer for investigations aud a report to the board's general purposes committee. At its last meeting the hoard instructed the secretary to write to the Public Works Department complaining of the interruptions of supply from Horahora, the seriousness of which the board viewed with much concern, and asking the department to let the board have an assurance that it would endeavour to overcome the present difficulties as quickly as possible, so as to maintain the necessary continuity of supply.