Power cuts in Kirkwall town centre

There has been disruption to the electricity network in Kirkwall today with Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) confirming that around 545 properties have been affected.

A spokeswoman from the power provider said that at 2.42pm this afternoon, their engineers were alerted to low power lines near cattle near Kirkwall. To ensure the safety of the general public and livestock, engineers temporarily isolated power supplies to 545 properties to make repairs to the network. SSEN are currently switching sections of the network to restore power in stages to those affected with the final supplies estimated to be restored at 5.00pm today.

The spokeswoman said: “We would like to thank our customers for their patience this afternoon, apologise for any inconvenience caused and reassure local residents and business owners we are working to restore their power as quickly and as safely as possible.”