Tent tangles in power pole, disrupts power

A tent knocked out power in the Red Cliffs Mall area after getting tangled in a power line, St. George, Utah, June 14, 2015

ST. GEORGE – A power outage interrupted service on the east side of St. George in the Panorama area Sunday afternoon when a tent got tangled in a power line.

A tent knocked out power in the Red Cliffs Mall area after getting tangled in a power line, St. George, Utah, June 14, 2015 | Photo courtesy of Jenny Jantzen, St. George News
A tent knocked out power in the Red Cliffs Mall area after getting tangled in a power line, St. George, Utah, June 14, 2015 | Photo courtesy of Jenny Jantzen, St. George News

“Somebody’s pop tent blew up into the line,” Marc Mortensen, assistant to the St. George City manager, said. “When that happens, obviously, the system thinks that there is something wrong – which there is. And so, instead of burning or melting the tent down or destroying whatever it is that hit the line, the circuit opens automatically.”

Mortensen said it acts as a safety guard.

“The system says ‘hey, there is danger to somebody so I’m going to open the circuit,’ basically turning the power off on this particular line,” he said.

Jenny Jantzen, a resident in the area, said a gust of wind carried the tent up into the air before it got tangled up in a power pole outside of her home.

Other residents in the area reported hearing a loud “boom” before the power went out.

As this report is published, Mortensen said he does not have an official report on the exact areas affected by the outage, or when the power will be restored.

“Our crews have to go back and remove whatever it is on the line and then start back up, reconnect or close the circuit and let the power system function like it normally does,” he said.

St. George Police officers are staged at various traffic lights throughout the area to direct traffic.

Drivers are advised to be patient and drive with caution in the areas where traffic lights are out and to treat signalized intersections as four-way stops.

This is a developing story and may be updated as further details emerge.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2015, all rights reserved.

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