As of 11am Saturday 9 December, the ACT State Emergency Service (ACTSES) has received over 600 requests for assistance since last night’s massive storm across Canberra.

Teams from ACTSES, ACT Rural Fire Service, ACT Fire & Rescue, TCCS and ACT Parks and Conservation Service have completed nearly half of these jobs so far. NSWSES have also arrived and are assisting with the storm response.  

There are a large number of trees down right across the ACT already, while high soil moisture may cause even more downed trees. The public is urged to take care near large trees, and while driving on ACT roads. 

Evoenergy says more than 700 Canberrans remain without power, which could continue into Sunday and possibly Monday.

Today is forecast to be the peak of the current Heatwave. Residents without electricity are being asked to be mindful of the potential health risks and consider finding shelter in a cooler environment like a shopping centre. 

ACTESA is also urging the community to: 

• Check the ACT Emergency Services Agency website for updated incident information (esa.act.gov.au) 
• Follow @ACTEmergencyServicesAgency on Facebook @ACT_ESA on X (formerly Twitter) 
• Check the ACT Health website for advice on how to stay safe in the heat and what you can do to help someone impacted by heat – https://www.health.act.gov.au/ 
• View the reported Road Closure Map – Road closures – City Services (act.gov.au) 
• View the Evoenergy power outages map – Outages – Evoenergy 
• Listen to ABC Local Radio on 666 AM 
• Contact Access Canberra on 13 22 81 
• For assistance in a storm or flood call the ACTSES on 132 500 
• In a life-threatening emergency call triple-zero (000)