Sparks were quite literally flying at the opening night of the Wairarapa A and P Show at Clareville Showgrounds, but the rest of the weekend seemed to go off without a hitch.
Emergency services were called Friday evening with reports of a powerline sparking about 8.15pm.
A fire crew quickly arrived on the scene, with one firefighter later confirming that they had isolated the line, switched the power off, and secured the scene.
Event organisers were left to wait for Powerco’s arrival to fix the blown fuse responsible.
In a separate incident during the drizzly opening night, power was accidentally cut to one of the show rides at about 9pm, leaving riders hanging.
Patrons were stuck on the ride for about 15 minutes before a backup generator was plugged in, after which they were asked to disembark.
Kate Philip, who was on the ride when it broke down, said she was disappointed that she and other punters didn’t get to continue the ride or receive a refund but understood it was for everyone’s safety.
A Powerco spokesperson confirmed one of its field crews was called at 8.31pm to a report of sparking equipment at the event.
“One customer lost power for just over two hours on Friday evening, following an equipment failure on a power pole at the Clareville Showgrounds,” the spokesperson said.
“The broken equipment was replaced, and power was restored at 10.46pm.”
The Times-Age contacted the show organisers for comment on how the overall event had unfolded but was told to get back in a day or two as they were too frazzled to comment after “a hard, exhausting” weekend.
Photos from Clareville page 4-5
