Sydney Power Outages 2026: Full List of Affected Areas After Severe Storm

SYDNEY — Thousands of homes and businesses across Sydney and parts of New South Wales continued to experience power outages Friday following a severe thunderstorm that swept through the region late Thursday, downing trees and damaging electricity lines, according to distributors Ausgrid and Endeavour Energy.

At the peak of the disruptions on Thursday night, more than 11,000 properties lost electricity, with Ausgrid reporting over 7,350 customers affected and Endeavour Energy around 4,400. By early Friday morning, numbers had decreased significantly, but several thousand customers remained without power as restoration crews worked through the day. Ausgrid indicated approximately 5,000 customers were still off supply in the morning, while Endeavour reported about 600.

The storm, which hit around 8 p.m. Thursday with strong winds, hail and heavy rain, primarily impacted northern, western and some central suburbs of Sydney. Outages were scattered rather than concentrated in one large area, reflecting widespread tree falls and infrastructure damage. No widespread transmission-level issues were reported by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), and the disruptions remained at the distribution network level.

Here is a summary of the main areas affected based on distributor updates and outage maps as of Friday morning, March 27, 2026:

• Northern Beaches and North Shore (Ausgrid network): Multiple suburbs including parts of Brookvale, where local facilities reported outages. Other affected pockets included areas around the Northern Beaches peninsula and lower North Shore, where fallen trees disrupted overhead lines.
• Western Sydney (Endeavour Energy and Ausgrid overlap): Suburbs in western and southwestern Sydney faced significant disruptions. Specific reports included Holsworthy and surrounding areas in the southwest.
• Central Coast and Hunter region fringes (Ausgrid): Some extensions of outages reached into parts of the Central Coast, though the bulk remained in greater Sydney.
• Other scattered Sydney suburbs: Outages were reported in various pockets across the Ausgrid network, which covers much of metropolitan Sydney, the Central Coast and Hunter. Endeavour Energy's network in western and southern Sydney also saw residual outages.

In Victoria, smaller-scale outages persisted on the CitiPower and Powercor networks. The full outage list showed isolated incidents in suburbs such as Altona, Altona Meadows, Altona North, Ararat, Beech Forest, Bell Park, Flinders, Geelong West, Glen Waverley, Northcote and others. These were mostly under investigation, with estimated restoration times ranging from Friday afternoon into Saturday. Powercor reported around 2,000 unplanned customers off supply in some updates, though numbers fluctuated.

Queensland's Energex network and other distributors like Essential Energy in regional NSW reported only routine or minimal unplanned outages, with no major storm-related events on Friday. Western Australia and South Australia showed no significant widespread disruptions tied to weather on the day.

Authorities urged residents to stay at least 8 meters away from any fallen power lines and to treat all downed infrastructure as live. Residents were advised to report outages directly through distributor apps, websites or hotlines rather than social media for faster response: Ausgrid on 13 13 88 or 131 388 for faults, Endeavour Energy on 131 003, and Essential Energy on 132 080.

Distributors provided real-time outage maps on their websites, allowing customers to check by suburb or address for estimated restoration times. Many unplanned outages from the storm carried targets into Friday evening or early Saturday, depending on access and damage extent. Some complex repairs involving pole replacements or line restringing could take longer.

The NSW State Emergency Service (SES) received around 400 calls for assistance related to the storm, including requests for help with fallen trees blocking roads and minor flooding. No serious injuries were reported from the weather event itself.

This latest incident highlights ongoing challenges for Australia's electricity distribution networks during extreme weather. While not on the scale of January 2026 heatwave and bushfire-related outages that affected tens of thousands in Victoria and other states, it underscores vulnerabilities in overhead infrastructure common in suburban and regional areas.

Broader context includes frequent coal plant outages over the 2025-26 summer — 108 total, with 90 unplanned — which have strained the National Electricity Market at times. Scheduled closures like Eraring in NSW continue to spark debate about reliability during the energy transition to renewables.

For affected households, practical steps included preserving food in fridges and freezers, using battery backups where available, and checking on elderly or vulnerable neighbors. Some distributors offer compensation for prolonged outages exceeding certain thresholds.

Meteorologists warned of further unstable weather across eastern Australia over the weekend, with potential for additional thunderstorms in NSW and Queensland. Residents in storm-prone areas were encouraged to secure loose outdoor items and monitor Bureau of Meteorology updates.

In Victoria, Powercor and CitiPower crews continued addressing isolated faults, many listed as "under investigation." Affected towns on Friday included small numbers in Altona (1 customer), Altona Meadows (1), Ararat (2), Beech Forest (1) and larger pockets in Glen Waverley (hundreds in one instance) and Geelong West.

These Victorian outages appeared unrelated to the NSW storm and stemmed from routine faults, vehicle incidents or localized issues rather than widespread weather events.

Nationally, AEMO reported no market suspensions or lack-of-reserve conditions on Friday, indicating the power system handled the localized distribution outages without broader impacts.

Customers are reminded that planned outages for maintenance continue separately and can be checked via distributor tools using a National Electricity Customer Framework (NECF) reference number where applicable.

The storm's impact on Sydney served as a reminder of the importance of grid resilience as Australia shifts toward more renewable energy sources interspersed with extreme weather patterns linked to climate variability.

Energy distributors emphasized safety first: never touch fallen lines, avoid using candles near flammable materials, and exercise caution with portable generators to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

As restoration progressed Friday, many customers saw power return in waves, with priority given to hospitals, emergency services and critical infrastructure.

For the most accurate real-time information, residents should visit official outage maps:

• Ausgrid: ausgrid.com.au/Outages
• Endeavour Energy: endeavourenergy.com.au/power-outages
• Powercor/CitiPower: powercor.com.au
• Energex (QLD): energex.com.au/outages
• Outage Tracker (multi-network): outagetracker.com.au

This event, while disruptive, was managed without escalation to load shedding or statewide alerts, a positive sign for network response capabilities.

As Australia navigates its energy future amid more frequent severe weather, localized outages like those on March 26-27 underscore the need for hardened infrastructure, including undergrounding lines in high-risk areas and faster deployment of smart grid technologies.

Affected communities showed resilience, with neighbors supporting one another and businesses adapting where possible. The SES and energy companies coordinated closely to prioritize public safety.

For now, the focus remains on full restoration and preparing for any follow-up weather systems forecast for the coming days.