Victoria storm recovery: what you need to know

Right now, we're dealing with the aftermath of the storms which have left many without phone service and even more without power.

The storms (and subsequent power outages) have affected our network, but we're already hard at work to bring you and your neighbours back online.

Where we can, we’re using back-up generators while we wait for power to be restored.

For localised updates about your service, check Telstra Outages.

18 February, 9am (AEDT)

Thanks to the work of our techs, we've brought the rest of our mobile sites back online.

For future updates, check on our Telstra Outages page.

We continue to offer disaster assistance in several postcodes affected by the storm. This includes areas in Gippsland and the Grampians which have also been impacted by fire. Postcodes include:

• 3871
• 3953
• 3870
• 3385
• 3381

16 February, 6pm (AEDT)

Throughout the day our teams have made significant progress restoring mobile sites. We still currently have 15 mobile sites disrupted, however 98% of our mobile sites have now been restored.

There are still 1220 fixed services disrupted, compared to 2300+ at the start of the day.

Our local teams have also been out in the community throughout the day, providing free Wi-Fi, battery charging packs and help accessing our disaster support package.

Restoration work will continue to take place over the weekend.

16 February, 9am (AEDT)

We have made significant progress restoring mobile sites in the last few days. 35 sites are still disrupted, down from over 220 just a few days ago.

There are still 2300+ fixed services still disrupted.

15 February, 5pm (AEDT)

We’re making good progress restoring mobile services following the severe storms, with more than 90% of our affected mobile sites now back online.

Our people on the ground have been working to get everything back up and running, including hooking up generators at sites where there’s still no power.

This includes communities like Mirboo North, which copped it in the storms. A generator delivered under the Federal Government’s STAND program has brought important mobile services back online for the community.

15 February, 1pm AEDT

Our technicians are continuing to work in challenging conditions to get to sites and restore connectivity. As you can see above, power lines are still down and debris continues to block major roadways.

We're bringing in more hands from interstate to help the techs already working in the field.

So far, we have restored 432 mobile sites - more than 85% of sites impacted - leaving only 75 sites still disrupted.

More updates on our progress to follow at 5pm AEDT

15 February, 9am (AEDT)

Good morning.

Teams on the ground are continuing the important work of restoring services following this week's severe storms.

Currently, there are 96 mobile sites disrupted, and over 5200 landline services disrupted. Overnight we have restored an additional 60 mobile sites.

Teams continue to work on refueling generators in areas that mains power is still disrupted. We're working with power authorities and other emergency services agencies to access and restore power to these sites on a more permanent basis.

14 February, 5pm (AEDT)

We have been working on restoring services and are making significant progress.

We have now restored 334 mobile sites since yesterday's storms, up from 263 overnight.

At the time of writing, we still have 159 sites experiencing disruption.

We’ve brought a number of sites back online overnight and throughout today, but with the power outages continuing, there’s still a lot to do.

Many of our network sites have back up power that kept services running after the storms hit, but that back-up power may not last during extended power outages.

That is why we have teams on the ground deploying and refuelling generators as quickly as they can. We are also working closely with power authorities and emergency services to access and restore power to affected sites.

We know how important it is to stay in touch with loved ones during times like this and we are working to get everything back online as quickly as possible where it’s safe for our technicians to do so.

14 February, 1pm (AEDT)

We continue to restore services across Victoria following the storms. In the meantime, we're rolling out some of our new STAND generators. These generators are hauled into disaster areas on big trailers, and connect to exchanges and cell towers to keep them going while we wait for mains power.

We expect these generators to be delivered and brought online in the next few hours.

14 February, 10:00am (AEDT)

Current status

We are currently working to restore services following the storms. Power outages across the state are impacting hundreds of thousands of properties, including many of our network sites (like mobile base stations). We’re using generators to keep as many sites online as possible while we wait for the power to come back on.

At this stage, we're seeing disruptions across 223 mobile sites around the state and almost 5000 landlines are disrupted.

We have already restored 263 mobile sites, and techs will continue this work in the coming days.

Disaster assistance available

We are currently offering disaster assistance in several postcodes affected by the storm. This includes areas in Gippsland and the Grampians which have also been impacted by fire. Postcodes include:

• 3871
• 3953
• 3870
• 3385
• 3381

Scroll through our interactive map to see where disaster assistance packages are being offered.

 If you’re a Telstra post-paid customer, we’ll be automatically bestowing an extra 100GB of data for use within 30 days in Australia.

If you’re a Telstra pre-paid customer in an affected postcode, you are eligible for 35GB of data for use within 30 days in Australia. Typically you will receive an SMS with instructions on how to apply this data if you are in an affected area. Alternatively, you can apply the data by calling us on 1800 888 888.

We will continue to monitor the event and make additional support available should it be required.

How to stay online during outages

With power outages rolling across the state and potential load shedding activities set to begin, it's important to keep your devices charged so you can stay online.

To save your mobile's battery, turn on Low Power Mode, reduce your screen's brightness and consider disabling some notifications. 

If you can't get online via your phone, we have thousands of free payphones across the state that are free for you to use, and also offer free Wi-Fi (where available).

Find our payphones on the map below, or use our payphone finder on Telstra.com

Can I still call 000?

If our network is unavailable, your mobile can connect automatically to other surviving networks (that are within coverage range) to allow you to place a call to emergency services.

Keeping you updated

We'll keep this blog updated as we get more information. Check back regularly for more information.