Two Tripped Power Lines Leave Nearly 100k Customers in the Dark Across Wyoming
8 days ago
- #Wyoming
- #emergency-response
- #power-outage
- A widespread power outage affected nearly 93,000 customers in Wyoming, with 8,800 still without power by evening.
- The outage was possibly caused by a pair of 500-kilovolt power lines tripping near Medicine Bow, leading to cascading failures.
- The Dave Johnston Power Plant in Converse County caught fire after the outages began, but it was a small fire with no injuries.
- Power restoration efforts were underway, with some areas expected to remain without power overnight due to unstable voltages.
- Authorities advised residents to treat downed power lines as dangerous, conserve cell phone batteries, and use generators safely.
- Emergency services and utilities coordinated to restore power, with some areas like Weston County already resolved.
- The aurora borealis was considered as a potential cause, but no definitive cause was confirmed.
- Local businesses and services adapted to the outage, with some using backup generators to continue operations.