Squirrels inside substation cause power outage
NorthWestern Energy blames squirrels for causing power outages affecting almost 15,000 people.
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USA, Missoula: NorthWestern Energy blames squirrels for causing power outages affecting almost 15,000 people.
Missoula, Montana’s squirrel population decreased by at least three the past weekend after knocking out electricity to thousands of city residents. They caused at least 3 outages over the course of 2 days and at one point nearly 15,000 NorthWestern Energy customers lost power for roughly 45 minutes after a local substation was damaged.
Many Missoula customers temporarily lost their service Saturday morning, Sunday morning and again on Sunday evening. NorthWestern Energy told Montana Public Radio squirrels are to blame for each disruption, adding that the bushy-tailed rodents are one of the leading causes of power outages. Local restaurant owner Ben Burda shared that he spoke with a Northwestern Energy linesman who said that a squirrel jumped and landed on a nearby transformer and blew it.
Source: Montana Public Radio, Missoulian.com