Power Outage in Wollongong? Here's Exactly What to Do (and When to Call an Electrician)

The power’s just gone out. Before you call anyone, a few quick checks will tell you whether it’s a network problem (nothing you can fix) or something in your own home that needs an electrician. Here’s the order to work through.

The quick answer

If the power is out, first check whether your neighbours have power too. If the whole street is dark, it’s a network outage — report it to your distributor and wait. If it’s only your home, check your switchboard for a tripped safety switch; if resetting it doesn’t hold, or you smell burning or see scorching, stop and call a licensed electrician. EK Electric answers emergency callouts across Wollongong 24/7 on (02) 4214 4680.

Step 1 — Is it just you, or the whole street?

Look outside. Are your neighbours’ lights on? Are the streetlights on?

Whole street is out → it’s a network (distributor) outage. You can’t fix this and neither can a private electrician. Report it to Endeavour Energy (the Illawarra’s network distributor) and check their outage page for restoration times.
Only your home is out → the problem is on your side of the meter. Move to Step 2.

Step 2 — Check your switchboard

Open your switchboard and look at the switches (circuit breakers and safety switches / RCDs).

If one switch has flipped to the OFF (or middle) position, a circuit has tripped. Turn off appliances on that circuit, then try switching it back on.
If it holds, you’re done — something on that circuit faulted (often a failing appliance). Plug things back in one at a time to find the culprit.
If it trips again immediately, or won’t reset at all, there’s a fault that needs a licensed electrician. Don’t keep forcing it.

Step 3 — Stop and call if you see any of these

Call a 24/7 electrician straight away — do not keep resetting — if you notice:

A burning smell, smoke, or scorch marks around outlets or the switchboard
Sparking, buzzing, or an outlet that’s hot to touch
Power flickering across the whole house
A switch that trips the instant you reset it
Any water near the switchboard or wiring (after storms)

These are safety risks. The safe move is to leave it off and get a licensed electrician to make it safe.

Why did my safety switch trip?

A safety switch (RCD) trips to protect you from an electric shock when it detects current leaking to earth — often from a faulty appliance, water ingress, or damaged wiring. It’s doing its job. Repeated tripping means something genuine is wrong, not that the switch is faulty. An electrician can isolate the circuit, find the fault and fix it properly.

What EK Electric does on an emergency callout

When you call, a licensed electrician is dispatched and we make the situation safe first — isolating the fault, restoring what’s safe to restore, and explaining what went wrong. Every emergency job is quoted clearly (no surprise after-hours loadings), completed to AS/NZS 3000, and issued a compliance certificate.

Available 24/7 across the Illawarra & South Coast

Power failures don’t wait for business hours. EK Electric answers emergency callouts across Wollongong, Shellharbour, Nowra, Ulladulla and the South Coast — nights, weekends and public holidays. See our emergency electrician service or call (02) 4214 4680 any time.