St. Mary
Power beginning to be restored in Morgan City
Posted: Jun 27, 2012 7:09 PM by Erin Steuber
Updated: Jun 27, 2012 7:15 PM
A sigh of relief for some residents in Morgan City. Power is back on. To avoid overloading the system, the city is turning on one circuit at a time. Electricity has been fully restored to Teche Regional Medical Center. The Mayor says, so far there seem to be no electrical problems in areas where the power is restored. But if they don't have another unit at the steam plant working by tomorrow, or don't replace the transformer, the city will have rolling blackouts. All of this stems from a transformer blew and caused an explosion and fire at the power plant last night around 6:00. The fire took out the main entry point of electricity to the city. Nearly 6,000 homes have since been without electricity.
The mayor says everything is running smoothly, but the critical time will be mid-day tomorrow as people begin to return home, and businesses are open. As the power comes back on, it will most likely flicker, officials are asking residents to be patient and not turn everything on all at once.
"It's probably going to be a wait and see, it may come on, it may come off several times, just bear with them they'll get it done," said Morgan City Assistant Police Chief Glenn Blanco
The transformer that caught fire plays a key component in providing power to the city. Without it, no electricity can be generated.
"That obviously causes a complete and total failure, and no electricity coming in," said Morgan City Mayor Tim Matte.
As residents begin returning, police are asking people to be cautious at intersections, since not all traffic lights have been restored.
"When the electricity is out, as far as intersections and stop lights, they turn into a four way stop," said Blanco.
The mayor says crews are continuing to work tirelessly. He's asking residents to stay patient. They're planning to have power completely restored tonight.
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