Harvey Fresh lost power on Thursday afternoon, and a spokesperson from the company told ABC Local Radio that production would not start again until power was restored to the region.
Despite road closures in the region, the spokesperson said some roads had been cleared and the processor was able to get supplies in and out.
But dairy farmers around Harvey, 140km south of Perth, said milk tankers had been unable to reach farms because of road closures.
Harvey dairy farmer Fabian Italiano said he had been forced to start dumping thousands of litres of milk.
«I’ve still got a tank full, which is about 2,000 to 2,500 litres from last night that I’ll probably end up dumping,» he said.
«I’ve already dumped about 2,500 this morning.»
Mr Italiano farms close to the town centre of Harvey and said many residents had evacuated.
«It’s a ghost town there,» he said.
But he said he did not feel he was in immediate danger.
Elgin farmer Darren Merritt farms about 40km south of Harvey, and is a major Harvey Fresh supplier.
Mr Merritt milks about 700 cows on his dairy and produces about 700,000 litres a year.
He said on Friday he was unsure whether he would be able to send any more of his milk before the weekend.
«I’m wondering what’s going to happen with our production,» he said.
Mr Merritt said he was in the process of building a new dairy on his property, and a 32,000 litre vat had been delivered to his property on Thursday.
He said he should be able to store some milk in that vessel, as long as it could be connected to refrigeration.
Mr Merritt said he had so far been able to avoid dumping milk, but he was unsure how long the emergency fire situation would continue.
«We should get our skates on and get this vat hooked up,» he said. «No one wants to tip milk, do they?»
But dairy farmers around Harvey, 140km south of Perth, said milk tankers had been unable to reach farms because of road closures.
Harvey dairy farmer Fabian Italiano said he had been forced to start dumping thousands of litres of milk.
«I’ve still got a tank full, which is about 2,000 to 2,500 litres from last night that I’ll probably end up dumping,» he said.
«I’ve already dumped about 2,500 this morning.»
Mr Italiano farms close to the town centre of Harvey and said many residents had evacuated.
«It’s a ghost town there,» he said.
But he said he did not feel he was in immediate danger.
Elgin farmer Darren Merritt farms about 40km south of Harvey, and is a major Harvey Fresh supplier.
Mr Merritt milks about 700 cows on his dairy and produces about 700,000 litres a year.
He said on Friday he was unsure whether he would be able to send any more of his milk before the weekend.
«I’m wondering what’s going to happen with our production,» he said.
Mr Merritt said he was in the process of building a new dairy on his property, and a 32,000 litre vat had been delivered to his property on Thursday.
He said he should be able to store some milk in that vessel, as long as it could be connected to refrigeration.
Mr Merritt said he had so far been able to avoid dumping milk, but he was unsure how long the emergency fire situation would continue.
«We should get our skates on and get this vat hooked up,» he said. «No one wants to tip milk, do they?»
Source: ABC
