Community Corner

What Caused Lake Harriet-Area Power Outage Tuesday Night?

Over 2,800 lost power.

Last night, you and 2,800 of your neighbors may have heard a buzz, then saw your lights dim or go out for a half-hour, and thought "We may be having unseasonably warm weather, but it's not time for brownouts yet, is it?"

Turns out, the cause was a little more dramatic.

While the finer details are still under investigation, an Xcel Energy spokesperson told Patch, it seems that a jumper—those big switches on power poles that let workers isolate a section of line—burned open. The electricity then arced over to the telephone pole, setting the cross arm supporting the wires on fire.

Find out what's happening in Southwest Minneapoliswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The problem was solved in exactly 24 minutes, the spokesperson said. Some traffic lights in the area were knocked out, and are currently flashing red, possibly slowing traffic.

"I wouldn't say these are frequent, but it can happen," she said. "That's hot equipment."

Find out what's happening in Southwest Minneapoliswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Thanks to readers Sarah Burgess and Alex Phung, who alerted us to the outage and gave us leads on possible causes.


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