A 161-kV Tennessee Valley Authority transmission line failed Wednesday morning and fell into 13,200-volt city power lines below it, knocking out power to 154 customers in west Oak Ridge for four hours. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Electric Department)
A high-voltage Tennessee Valley Authority power line came loose and fell into Oak Ridge power lines below it Wednesday morning, and about 154 customers on the west end of town lost electricity for roughly four hours.
But power was restored to all customers just after 1 p.m. Wednesday, said Margaret Elgin, Oak Ridge Electric Department engineering manager.
Elgin said a 161-kilovolt TVA transmission line failed in a wooded area near Bear Creek Road in west Oak Ridge at about 9 a.m. Wednesday. As a result, a conductor came loose, and the line fell into 13,200-volt city electrical lines below it.
Elgin said there was no threat to public safety during the line failure or power outage.
She said TVA is still assessing what happened, and it could be a few days before that work is finished.
Meanwhile, the west Oak Ridge customers are now getting power from a new source, a substation north of the former K-25 site, which has been renamed Heritage Center.
Elgin said the TVA line lying on the city lines prevented the Oak Ridge Electric Department from immediately reconfiguring its system.
Among other things, electrical workers had to make sure everything was safe so crews could untangle the TVA and city lines and then swap power sources, Elgin said.
Carol Donath says
My goodness, that could have catastrophic in a different place!
John Huotari says
As I understand it, the lines were “de-energized.” I will try to follow up on the cause.
Jim Freels says
I suspect this event also caused SNS to trip off.
John Huotari says
I have checked into this, Jim, but don’t have a clear answer yet. The SNS was knocked off line at about 9 a.m. Wednesday, at about the same time as the TVA transmission line failure, but I haven’t found out for sure whether the two events were connected. I’ll let you know if and when I do.
SNS was back online at 4 a.m. Thursday.
Mike Mahathy says
Power was off at Rarity Ridge but I don’t think it was catastrophic by any sense.