In an electrical emergency, protect yourself first, turn off the power at the switchboard if safe, never touch the person directly, call Triple Zero (000), and follow DRSABCD. According to the AIHW, 73 per cent of electrocution deaths in Australia occur in the home.
Melbourne’s south-east and Bayside suburbs experience frequent storm-related electrical emergencies, from downed wires to house fires sparked by damaged cabling. Byrd Electrical has put together this guide to help homeowners respond safely before a licensed electrician or emergency crew arrives.
The First Rule in Every Electrical Emergency: Protect Yourself
The instinct to rush toward someone in danger is powerful, but in an electrical emergency it can get you killed. Electricity doesn’t behave like other hazards. You can’t see it, smell it, or hear it, and a live conductor can turn wet ground, metal fences, and even concrete into a lethal pathway. According to St John Ambulance Australia, the first step in any emergency response is to check for danger to yourself, then bystanders, then the injured person.
This principle applies whether you’re dealing with a downed powerline after a storm in Sandringham, a child who has touched a faulty appliance in Brighton, or an electrical fire starting behind a wall in Bentleigh. Stop, assess the danger, and only act when you’re confident you won’t become a second casualty.
How to Respond to an Electric Shock in the Home
If someone in your household receives an electric shock from an appliance, power point, or exposed cable, the speed and accuracy of your response matters enormously. Follow these steps in order:
Turn Off the Power Immediately
If it’s safe to reach the switchboard, switch off the main circuit breaker to disconnect the power supply. This is the fastest way to separate the person from the electrical source. In many older homes across Elsternwick, Carnegie, and Caulfield South, the switchboard may be in a garage, laundry, or external wall cabinet. Every member of your household should know where it is and how to operate it.
Do Not Touch the Person Directly
If you can’t turn the power off, do not touch the person with your bare hands. Use a dry, non-conductive object like a wooden broom handle, a plastic chair, or a rolled-up newspaper to push them away from the electrical source. Never use anything wet or metallic. Water conducts electricity, and metal objects will transfer the current straight through you.
Follow DRSABCD
Once the person is free from the power source, follow the DRSABCD action plan recommended by the Australian Resuscitation Council. Check for Danger, assess their Response, Send for help by calling Triple Zero (000), open their Airway, check for Breathing, begin CPR if they’re not breathing, and apply a Defibrillator if one is available. Even a seemingly mild electric shock warrants medical assessment, as the Better Health Channel (Victoria) notes, because internal injuries aren’t always immediately visible.
Cool Any Burns
Electrical burns often have entry and exit wounds that look small on the surface but may involve significant tissue damage underneath. If the person has visible burns, cool them under running water for 20 minutes. Remove jewellery and loose clothing from the burnt area, but leave anything stuck to the burn in place. Cover with a light, non-stick dressing and wait for paramedics.
What to Do If You See Fallen Powerlines
Storms are the most common cause of fallen powerlines across Melbourne’s south-east. During the February 2024 storms, United Energy alone responded to hundreds of fallen wires across suburbs from Bentleigh East through to the Mornington Peninsula, with more than 500,000 Victorian homes losing power at the peak of the event. Knowing how to respond to downed lines could save your life:
- Stay at least 10 metres away. According to Energy Safe Victoria, you must always treat fallen powerlines as live, even if they look damaged or inactive. The ground around a fallen conductor can carry dangerous voltage that spreads outward in a gradient, which means even stepping near the line creates a difference in voltage between your feet that can deliver a fatal shock.
- Do not touch anything in contact with the line. Metal fences, vehicles, pools of water, trees, and even garden furniture can become energised if a powerline is resting on or near them. In coastal suburbs like Beaumaris, Black Rock, and Half Moon Bay, wet ground and salt residue on surfaces increase conductivity significantly.
- Call your electricity distributor immediately. For Melbourne’s south-east and Bayside, United Energy is the network operator. Their 24-hour faults and electrical emergencies line is 132 099. If anyone is injured or the situation is life-threatening, call Triple Zero (000) first.
- If you’re trapped near a fallen line, shuffle away. Keep both feet on the ground and take very small shuffling steps with your feet close together. This minimises the voltage difference between your two feet, reducing the risk of current flowing through your body. Never run, step, or jump with your feet apart.
- If your vehicle contacts a powerline, stay inside. The car’s tyres insulate you from the ground. Call 000 and wait for the electricity distributor to confirm the line has been de-energised. Only exit if the vehicle is on fire, and if you must, jump clear with both feet together without touching the vehicle and the ground at the same time, then shuffle away.
How to Handle an Electrical Fire Safely
Electrical fires are classified as Class E fires in Australia and require a specific response. According to the Metropolitan Fire Service, you should never use water on an electrical fire because water conducts electricity and can cause electrocution or make the fire spread. Here’s what to do instead:
Cut the Power If You Can
If the fire is localised to an appliance, unplug it at the wall. If the fire has reached the wall cavity or you can’t identify the source, switch off the main breaker at the switchboard. Cutting the power removes the electrical source feeding the fire and reduces the shock risk for anyone nearby.
Use the Right Extinguisher
Only use a carbon dioxide (CO2) or dry chemical powder (ABE-rated) fire extinguisher on an electrical fire. These use non-conductive agents that won’t transfer current back to you. Many homes in Malvern, Toorak, and Armadale have older switchboards and denser electrical loads that increase the risk of electrical fires, making a suitable extinguisher a worthwhile investment.
Smother Small Fires
If you don’t have an extinguisher, a fire blanket can smother a small appliance fire by cutting off its oxygen supply. Drape the blanket over the burning appliance and leave it in place. Do not remove it until the appliance has cooled completely.
Evacuate and Call 000
If the fire is spreading, filling rooms with smoke, or burning inside a wall, get everyone out of the house immediately. Close doors behind you to slow the fire’s progress and call Triple Zero (000) from outside. Do not re-enter the property for any reason.
What to Do During and After a Power Outage
Power outages are the most common electrical emergency across Melbourne, and they carry their own set of risks. According to Energy Safe Victoria, storms are the leading cause of outages because strong winds bring down trees across powerlines. During the February 2024 event, United Energy restored power to more than 200,000 customers across Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs, but many properties remained without supply for several days.
- Turn off and unplug electrical appliances. This prevents damage from a power surge when supply is restored. Leave one light switched on so you know when power returns.
- Check whether the outage is just your property. If your neighbours still have power, the issue may be internal. Check your switchboard for a tripped circuit breaker or blown safety switch. In older homes across Hampton, Sandringham, and Mentone with ageing fuse boards, a tripped device can be harder to identify.
- Never connect a generator to your home’s wiring. Connecting a portable generator directly to household circuits is both illegal and potentially fatal under Victorian regulations. Backfeed through the switchboard can energise the street’s power lines and kill line workers trying to restore supply. Only a licensed electrician can install a generator transfer switch.
- Report downed lines and damaged infrastructure. Contact United Energy on 132 099 for Melbourne’s south-east, or call 000 if the situation is immediately dangerous.
- Have your property inspected before reconnecting. If your home sustained storm damage and power to the street has been restored but your property remains off, there may be damage to your private service cable. A licensed electrician needs to inspect, repair, and lodge a Certificate of Electrical Safety before the distributor will reconnect.
Why Melbourne’s South-East Faces Higher Storm-Related Risk
Melbourne’s Bayside and south-eastern suburbs sit directly in the path of weather systems that track across Port Phillip Bay. The combination of coastal exposure, mature street trees, and ageing overhead powerline infrastructure creates a heightened risk of storm-related electrical emergencies.
United Energy, the network operator for this region, manages thousands of kilometres of overhead lines through suburbs like Brighton, Brighton East, Glen Iris, and Bentleigh. When severe wind events hit, as they did in February 2024 and September 2024, these suburbs consistently record some of the highest fault and wire-down numbers across the network.
Properties with older overhead service connections, particularly those in tree-lined streets through Elsternwick, Carnegie, and Mordialloc, face a greater likelihood of branch strikes on power lines. Homes with ceramic fuse boards or missing safety switches are also less protected when power surges through after restoration, because modern RCDs and circuit breakers provide a level of surge response that older fuse-based systems simply don’t.
Areas We Service
We help homeowners prepare for and recover from electrical emergencies across Melbourne’s south-east and Bayside, including Brighton, Brighton East, Hampton, Sandringham, Black Rock, Beaumaris, Bentleigh, Bentleigh East, Malvern, Toorak, Armadale, Glen Iris, Elsternwick, Caulfield South, Carnegie, Mentone, Mordialloc, and surrounding suburbs.
Get Your Home’s Electrical Safety Checked Before the Next Storm
The best time to prepare for an electrical emergency is before it happens. Call Byrd Electrical on 03 8104 9604 to book a switchboard inspection, safety switch upgrade, or full electrical safety check, backed by our 100+ Year Workmanship Guarantee and carried out by licensed and insured electricians.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should you do first in an electrical emergency?
Check for danger to yourself before doing anything else. If someone has received a shock, turn off the power at the switchboard if you can safely reach it, then call Triple Zero (000). Never touch a person who is still in contact with an electrical source.
Can you use water to put out an electrical fire?
No. Water conducts electricity and using it on an electrical fire creates a serious electrocution risk. Use a CO2 or dry chemical powder (ABE-rated) fire extinguisher instead. If you don’t have one, a fire blanket can smother a small appliance fire.
How far should you stay from fallen powerlines?
Stay at least 10 metres away from downed power lines and anything they may be touching, including fences, vehicles, trees, and pools of water. Always assume the lines are live, even if they appear damaged or inactive, and call your electricity distributor immediately.
What is the DRSABCD action plan for electric shock?
DRSABCD stands for Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing, CPR, and Defibrillator. Once a person is safely separated from the electrical source, follow these steps in order. Begin CPR immediately if they are not breathing and call 000 for an ambulance.
Who do you call to report downed power lines in Melbourne’s south-east?
For Melbourne’s south-east and Bayside, contact United Energy on 132 099 to report downed lines, damaged poles, or electrical faults. If anyone is injured or the situation is life-threatening, call Triple Zero (000) first.
Should you move someone who has had an electric shock?
Do not move the person unless they are in immediate danger, such as from fire or further electrical contact. Moving them could worsen internal injuries. Once separated from the power source, keep them still and comfortable, monitor their breathing, and wait for paramedics to arrive.
