2015 Truck Fire on State Highway 1 Electricity Most electricity users are highly dependent on the reliable supply with most businesses and households having no alternative for heating, lighting, cooking or financial transactions. Most fuel stations and supermarkets do not have generator backup in the event of a loss of electricity. Tree falls, animals and human actions regularly result in power line failures causing vegetation fires. The Marlborough Lines network is very resilient and has multiple feeds which are linked and can be rapidly switched to ensure power remains available. Gas LPG is trucked into Marlborough and is delivered to homes and businesses from Nelson. LPG gas has numerous applications in agriculture including heating for poultry, livestock, greenhouses, producing hot water for sanitation and also as a forklift fuel. BOC Gas based in Blenheim has large storage tanks and also stocks a wide range of other gases such as oxygen, hydrogen, acetylene, ammonia and carbon dioxide. Fuel The majority of fuel supplied to Marlborough is landed in the Nelson Port from Refining NZ at Marsden Point and is stored in large tanks on site. From there it is transported the 120 kms by truck on State Highway 6 over the Whangamoa and Rai Saddles to Blenheim. There are no bulk storage facilities in Blenheim so fuel is stored on site at petrol stations, transport companies and the rail yards in Picton. Most of this fuel is not able to be dispensed if electricity supply is compromised, particularly if it is stored underground. Water Supply Blenheim, Picton, Havelock, Renwick, Awatere (including Seddon), Wairau Valley and Riverlands all rely on public supply with many other outlying communities being on local community supplies not operated by Council for example at Rarangi, Tirimoana and Momorangi Bay. Council supplies have varying storage capability and water treatment requirements. Water usage is very seasonal with summer extremely high due to garden irrigation demand. For emergency purposes winter night demand is assumed to be a minimum requirement. It is also assumed that reservoirs will be 60% full at the advent of an emergency. Marlborough Civil Defence Emergency Management Plan, 2017-2022 Page 22