Chorus trains farmers to keep Canterbury phones working

Telecom's Chorus division flew extra staff into the Christchurch in the aftermath of the 7.1 magnitude earthquake a month ago.

But in nearby rural Selwyn District, locals have farmers to thank for keeping the phone lines running during the prolonged power cuts caused by the September 4 quake.

Farmer Peter Williams was one of 25 Selwyn locals who had been trained by Chorus to help keep phonelines powered when back-up battery levels start to run low.

“I always thought the first time I’d be powering up a phone cabinet was during a snow storm, not an earthquake. It really wakes you up to what else could happen,” he said.

Over the past three years, Chorus has been working with Federated Farmers and the Selwyn District Council to create severe weather plans to help remote communities maintain phone services during prolonged power cuts.

In the aftermath of the power cuts caused by the 7.1 earthquake, seven local farmers connected generators to mobile phone sites and cabinets in Windwhistle, Snowden Road, Terrace Downs, Sleemans Rd, Derretts Rd, Sherwood and Springfield.

Selwyn District Council emergency management manager Wilson Brown said the efforts of these people made a real difference for the local community by helping to keep the network operating.

“Being able to pick up the phone and make sure friends and family were safe, or have an outside link to call for assistance really provided peace of mind to people in our district,” he said.

Mobile phone sites and roadside cabinets act as the link for mobile phones and landlines into the wider telecommunications network. They stop operating during a prolonged power cut once back-up batteries are exhausted.

Chorus senior delivery specialist Alan Melton said the widespread power outages pushed back-up batteries to their limits.

“Chorus deployed 60 generators to sites around the Christchurch region and having trained people connect their generators to these seven remote sites helped us free up technicians, so we could focus on assessing and repairing damage to the network.”

“We want to thank each of the local farmers for helping to keep their communities connected during this time of need and give them a $100 petrol voucher as a small token of our appreciation,” he said.

Chorus has installed 29 external power sockets on strategic telecommunications cabinets in the Selwyn district. Nationally, Chorus has spent almost $300,000 installing 300 power sockets on rural cabinets since 2007. All of Chorus’ new roadside cabinets have an external power socket as standard.

Major telephone exchanges have on-site diesel generators and batteries to provide power in the event of a mains power cut.