BROOKINGS – Weather is to blame for a power outage in Brookings Monday night, said Paul Melby, utility operations manager with Brookings Municipal Utilities.
Some folks experienced a power outage about 8 p.m. Monday, and crews were sent out to find the problem.
Lightning during the afternoon got in the cable and weakened it, Melby said, and moisture shorted out the cable, causing the outage.
“The bad thing about cable underground is you can’t see it. It’s nice to have it all underground until it fails,” Melby said.
The problem was located on Fourth Street South and Main, and interruptions of service extended throughout Brookings.
Crews trying to isolate the problem created surges, which some customers saw as their lights blinking off a twice in a row, which happened about three times, Melby said.
Power was back on by 9:30 p.m., he said.
“Today we will go and fix the cable that’s underground,” Melby said.
Contact Jodelle Greiner at jgreiner@brookingsregister.com.
