, Reporter
10-30-2009
More than 12,000 city utility customers throughout Ruston were without power Friday after moisture from torrential rain knocked out the city’s main generator on north Trenton Street.
“The city of Ruston had a catastrophic failure of its main electric transformer at the U.S. 167 North substation, which has resulted in the entire city being without electrical power,” Mayor Dan Hollingsworth said in a statement Friday morning.
The power outage began around 9 a.m., said Darrell Caraway, city utilities director.
City work crews turned on the city’s backup generator on Frazier Road on Friday afternoon and restored power throughout some parts of the city, Caraway said.
Hollingsworth wanted Ruston residents to know, however, that not everyone in the city would have their power restored at the same time.
“Alternate transformers will have to be warmed up gradually, and different areas of the city turned on at different intervals until it is safe to put a full electrical load on them,” Hollingsworth said.
City officials ask residents still without power to conserve water and keep refrigerators and freezers closed to preserve foods. They also ask those residents to avoid flushing and putting things in the sewer system until their power is restored, Hollingsworth said.
The power outage caused problems for many people throughout Ruston, most notably at four-way traffic stops, where traffic lights normally regulate traffic. Ruston police advised drivers to use caution while driving, although police didn’t have to respond to any major accidents Friday, said Police Chief Steve Rogers.
Lincoln Parish School System officials decided to keep schools open Friday, despite the power outage at all of the schools in Ruston, except for Ruston Junior High, which never lost power, said Becky Gemelli, a spokeswoman for the school system.
Outlying schools, such as those in Dubach and Grambling, weren’t affected by the power outage, Gemelli said.
Entergy, which provides service to Lincoln Parish customers outside of Ruston, reported a small power outage of its own that lasted a few hours Friday. The Entergy power outage, however, only affected about 500 customers in the outlying parts of Lincoln Parish, said Jim Pesnell, spokesman for Entergy.
“The power was out for our customers in Lincoln Parish for a few hours, but it was restored early this morning,” Pesnell said.
The company had maintained power for its customers for most of the day, Pesnell said.
“Higher wind velocities might possibly cause more problems for us (later Friday). We just don’t know,” Pesnell said.
Ruston police also had to respond to a call for service at the T.L. James Building after receiving a call about a reported gas leak. As it turns out, it wasn’t a gas leak at all — someone in the building had tried to pour gasoline into a faulty generator in the building and the gasoline spilled, Rogers said.
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