Parliamentary Questions

(a) at what time was Western Power first alerted to a power interruption at this location on the above mentioned day and by what means was notification made;
(b) was an automatic recloser activated arising from a fault at the location and, if so, at what time was the activation made;
(c) what was the Western Power response to the fire on 15 December 2019 and what works were carried out on this day or in the days following arising from the fire or related nearby faults;
(d) will the Minister please table all documents, work orders, photographs, videos or other material relating to the Western Power response to the Mogumber fault on 15 December 2019;
(e) in reference to pole number MG269 which was destroyed, I ask:
(i) what was the condition of the pole prior to the fire;
(ii) when was this pole due to be replaced;
(iii) when was this pole last inspected and please provide a copy of the inspection record or report;
(iv) was one of the two new poles located on the ground (destroyed by fire with identification discs intact) at the corner of Mogumber Road West and Red Gully Road a replacement pole intended for this location;
(v) were the remnants of the burnt pole MG269, cross arm and insulators retained as evidence for an investigation into the cause of the fire; and
(vi) were photographs taken by Western Power crews of Western Power infrastructure on the day, if so, please table those photographs;
(f) have the conductors between poles MG268 to MG270 been replaced since 15 December 2019;
(g) if no to (f), will the conductors be replaced and preserved as evidence for any investigation or claim arising from the fire;
(h) did Western Power meet the requirements for a Notification, Investigation and Reporting of this incident to the Director of Energy Safety;
(i) what investigation has been undertaken by Western Power to determine whether its infrastructure played any role in the fire;
(j) has Western Power determined whether its infrastructure played any role in the fire’s cause;
(k) what were the losses incurred by Western Power arising from the fire;
(l) please identify the infrastructure replaced and its location arising from the fire; and
(m) did Western Power have any outstanding work orders on the distribution network along Mogumber Road West?
Answered on 11 August 2020

(a) Western Power noted that protective device (Regan Circuit Breaker RGN 610.0) activated at 13:48 on 15 December 2019.

(b) As above

(c) The attending Western Power crew isolated the lines in order for DFES to fight the fire safely. When safe to do so, Western Power conducted a scope of the required repairs and then subsequently performed the repairs (including pole replacements) required.

(d) A copy of an investigation report has been provided to Building & Energy, the independent electricity safety regulator.

(e)

(i) Pole MG269 was fully serviceable, with no outstanding conditions/defects.

(ii) Pole MG269 was not scheduled for replacement.

(iii) Pole MG269 was last inspected on 16 January 2018, in line with Western Power’s typical inspection requirements. [see tabled paper no ]

(iv) No

(v) These were not retained for evidence as they were not seen as contributing to the cause to the fire.

(vi) Please refer to response to (d) above.

(f) No conductor replacement was completed as a result of this fire at this location.

(g) The conductors are preserved in place and in service at their location. Conductors were assessed as serviceable.

(h) Yes. This incident was notified to the Director of Building & Energy on 18 December 2019, pursuant to Reg. 23(1)(a) of the Electricity (Network Safety) Regulations, 2015.

(i) Western Power conducted an incident investigation in accordance with the regulation above in (h).

(j) Western Power has determined that its infrastructure did not play a role in causing the fire.

(k) Poles and other assets were damaged and required replacement.

(l) There were 20 burnt power poles and associated apparatus replaced after the fire. These poles were located in three maintenance zones, MOR/Z402, MOR/Z403 and MOR/Z422. [see tabled paper no ]

(m) Western Power had a total of 55 open work orders on the Mogumber feeder (RGN 610.0) prior to the fire. None of these open work orders were classified at the level that requires immediate replacement and they had been programmed to be completed. These work orders covered a variety of maintenance tasks including 18 pole replacements and 15 pole reinforcements. Nine pole reinforcement work orders were in the three maintenance zones where the poles burnt down. However, none of the work orders were associated with the pole at location MG269