Lights will come back on again soonSupplied A snow plough clears the road in Rangitikei. Relief is in sight for those living in the snow-bound backblocks of northern Rangitikei as electricity supplier Powerco closes in on the last remaining cut-off homes. A Powerco spokesman said on Friday it expected the power to be back on for all its customers in remote parts of Mangaweka by early next week. At the height of the storm, Taihape was cut off from the outside world and plunged into darkness. Powerco was earlier forced to bring in a heavy-lift chopper to pick up flattened poles because roads were blocked.

Source: Stuff July 28, 2017 03:22 UTC