A hung government. A cautious market. What else could go wrong this week? Residents of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory found out in this morning's power interruption.

Two thirds or about 6,000 of Alice Springs customers lost electricity after a switch fault at a substation before 7 this morning. Businesses in the area have started to complain about the long hours without power.

A supermarket in Gillen had to close for the day because the cash registers could not be used. Medical clinics are having difficulties with patients because their phone lines are dead and their medical records are stored in computer hard drives.

The electricity distributor in the area, Power and Water Corporation, posted in its website that initial inspections revealed a switch on a 22KV busbar failed. Power has been restored in Bradshaw, Gillen, parts of Braitling, and the rural area.

Power and Water's area manager Alan Whyte explained that their system is “a high voltage system” so technicians “have to use appropriate precautions.” He said they are “trying as quickly as they can to restore the other areas.”

Electricity supply, according to the distributor, will be fully restored across Alice Springs this afternoon.