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Electricity supplies in Australia’s most populous state, including its largest city Sydney, were under threat on Saturday after bushfires took out two substations with authorities warning of rolling blackouts if conditions worsen.

The blazes have raged across New South Wales, and they brought down transmission lines in the state’s south connecting with neighbouring Victoria, state energy minister Matt Kean tweeted.

Kean urged people to reduce unnecessary electricity use and “turn off pool pumps, lights in unoccupied rooms and avoid using washing machines and dishwashers”.

TransGrid chief executive Paul Italiano said the system was coping but “under stress”.