More than 4000 homes and businesses were left without power as a storm lashed Cargo and Nashdale while 10 fires were lit by the storm.
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The storm hit Cargo at about 5pm on Wednesday night and rolled across the region, reaching Orange at about 6pm.
The storm caused power outages from Cargo to the western edge of Orange, and did minor damage to trees.
The Rural Fire Service responded to 10 fires lit by lightning, and assisted Fire and Rescue NSW in another job at the intersection of The Escort Way and the Northern Distributor.
The rest of the fires were trees struck by the storm from Woodstock to Yeoval, all of which were extinguished by 11.30pm on Wednesday.
The State Emergency Service responded to three jobs overnight in the western hamlets clearing trees, while RFS also responded to several jobs in the Cargo and Canowindra areas.
Essential Energy released a statement saying more than 4000 properties were affected, while as of 9.30am, 69 homes and businesses were still without power.
“Crews worked Wednesday evening and into Thursday morning to restore power for as many customers as quickly as safety allowed and will continue to work today to restore power for all customers,” a spokesperson said.
The damage also caused the cancellation of a sealing project in Blayney, meaning contractors were available to begin sealing work along Cargo Road on Thursday.
RFS Canobolas Zone controller Brett Bowden said crews had been responding to fires from lightning storms every two or three days, with storm frequency increasing this week.
We’re expecting it to spike on Australia Day at it will be 45 degrees in much of the region and 37 or 38 in Orange and Oberon, so lightning fires might catch a little bit easier.
- RFS controller Brett Bowden
More storms are expected in the lead-up to Australia Day, with a heatwave set to make fire conditions more dangerous than they had been.
“With the storms they’ve been bringing moisture which has helped green things up a little bit and make the fires less intense,” Mr Bowden said.
“We’re expecting it to spike on Australia Day at it will be 45 degrees in much of the region and 37 or 38 in Orange and Oberon, so lightning fires might catch a little bit easier.”
He encouraged anyone who saw lightning strike the ground keep an “eagle eye” on the strike zone, and if they saw smoke contact Triple Zero immediately.
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