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Curiosity killed the power: Cat in substation blamed for city outage
Huntington County Herald-Press ^ | 10/27/04 | Cindy Klepper

Posted on 10/27/2004 3:15:14 AM PDT by asgardshill


Mobile power equipment at Cinergy's Guilford Street substation, site of Sunday night's outage. / Photo by Andrew Hancock

If your microwave quit with the bag of popcorn half-inflated Sunday evening, it didn't matter anyway -- the cable was out, too.

And you can blame the cat.

The feline, of the dark tiger variety, wandered into the Cinergy substation north of town, darkening many city homes and most city TV sets. And then -- after an unhealthy jolt of electricity had coursed through its body -- the cat wandered away.

"It must have had one more life," said Animal Control Officer Sheryl Arnold.

The cat's curiosity apparently led it into the substation near Johnson Junction on Guilford Street around 7 o'clock Sunday evening. At 7:05, the north end of the city was plunged into darkness.

"He touched two of the wrong wires at the same time, I'm guessing," said Arnold.

The cat's adventure left 2,516 Cinergy customers in Huntington without power. One of those customers was Comcast Cable, and when Comcast's power was interrupted, television screens all over Huntington went dark.

The power went out at 7:05 p.m. and was restored at 8:36 p.m., said Rob Norris of Cinergy's corporate office in Plainfield.

Arnold was called to the substation when a scorched cat was spotted at the scene.

"I came very close to catching the little stinker," Arnold said. "But everything was black up there, even the cat. It took off running lickety-split."

The cat ran into a field behind the substation.

"He seemed to be OK, but it seemed to have a bald butt," she said. "We could smell cooking fur."

Arnold planned to return today to look again for the cat, and she's asking area residents to be on the lookout for a medium-sized dark feline with a hairless rear end. If anyone does spot the animal, she asks that they call the Huntington County Humane Shelter at 356-0355 during its business hours, noon to 6 p.m. Outside of shelter business hours, they should call city police at 356-7110 so Arnold can be paged.

Norris was surprised to learn that the cat survived. He said the cat had wandered into a 12-kilovolt temporary regulator, one of the devices used to reduce the voltage of the electricity being brought into town.

While the substation is fenced in, the equipment inside the fence is not enclosed.

"That's why we tell people to stay out," he said. "You don't want to touch two of some things at the same time."

It's not unusual for animals, usually squirrels, to short out a substation, Norris said, but it's also not that common -- happening maybe once or twice a month in Cinergy's 22,000-square-mile service territory.


TOPICS: Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS: cat; electricity; humor; kitty; meow; power; zot
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A lesson for all you Viking Kitties in training out there.
1 posted on 10/27/2004 3:15:14 AM PDT by asgardshill
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To: PetroniDE; Slings and Arrows

For your ping lists ... poor burned-butt beast.


2 posted on 10/27/2004 3:22:11 AM PDT by asgardshill (Got a lump of coal? Tell Mary Mapes to 'shove it' - in 2 weeks you'll have a diamond.)
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To: asgardshill

That was just a Viking Kitty recharging.....getting ready for upcoming election ZOTS!!

NeverGore :^)


3 posted on 10/27/2004 3:29:23 AM PDT by nevergore (“It could be that the purpose of my life is simply to serve as a warning to others.”)
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To: nevergore

Even Viking Kitties need to remember safe charging techniques. She's going to be hard-pressed to explain to her Zotmaster how half her butt fur got roasted off :)


4 posted on 10/27/2004 3:35:07 AM PDT by asgardshill (Got a lump of coal? Tell Mary Mapes to 'shove it' - in 2 weeks you'll have a diamond.)
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To: asgardshill; MeekOneGOP; DocRock; Old Sarge; King Prout; Conspiracy Guy; SandyInSeattle
Even Viking Kitties need to remember safe charging techniques. She's going to be hard-pressed to explain to her Zotmaster how half her butt fur got roasted off :)

OK, who got greedy?

5 posted on 10/27/2004 6:13:25 AM PDT by Slings and Arrows (Am Yisrael Chai!)
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To: asgardshill; Slings and Arrows; Glenn; quantim; republicangel; Bahbah; Beaker; BADROTOFINGER; ...
I'd call it a draw.

---
Kitty Ping List alert!

[Freepmail me to get on or off the Kitty Ping List.]

6 posted on 10/27/2004 6:14:26 AM PDT by Slings and Arrows (Am Yisrael Chai!)
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To: asgardshill

Just Daaaaaaaang


7 posted on 10/27/2004 6:22:56 AM PDT by Conspiracy Guy (Ignorance, bigotry, envy, and gluttony are a few floor joists in the democratic platform.)
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To: asgardshill
Ahh...I love the smell of burnt kitties in the morning...

Robert Duvall, Apocolypse Now

8 posted on 10/27/2004 6:35:27 AM PDT by vetvetdoug (In memory of T/Sgt. Secundino "Dean" Baldonado, Jarales, NM-KIA Bien Hoa AFB, RVN 1965)
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To: Lady Jag

Bald cat butt *ping* ;-)


9 posted on 10/27/2004 8:41:23 AM PDT by Beaker (They're coming to take me away haha...)
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To: Slings and Arrows; 4mycountry; TheBigB; VRWCmember; Zavien Doombringer; jriemer; mhking; ...
haha! Funny. What a story!

Calling Viking Kitties to a kitty story.


10 posted on 10/27/2004 8:44:21 AM PDT by MeekOneGOP (There is only one GOOD 'RAT: one that has been voted OUT of POWER !! Straight ticket GOP!)
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To: asgardshill
"BOLO: medium-sized dark feline with a hairless rear end"

Yeah, I can see that being broadcast over the police frequencies!

11 posted on 10/27/2004 8:46:49 AM PDT by Not A Snowbird (Official RKBA Landscaper and Arborist, Pajama Duchess of Green Leafy Things)
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To: MeekOneGOP
"I came very close to catching the little stinker," Arnold said. "But everything was black up there, even the cat. It took off running lickety-split."

You blaming me for this? GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!


12 posted on 10/27/2004 8:51:49 AM PDT by Arrowhead1952 (Skerry talks and out comes nothing but stupid words.)
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To: MeekOneGOP

13 posted on 10/27/2004 8:52:10 AM PDT by Michael Goldsberry (Which part of "Don't Mess With Texas" didn't you get?)
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To: Beaker
Meowch!!


14 posted on 10/27/2004 8:52:19 AM PDT by Lady Jag (Used to be sciencediet but found the solution)
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To: MeekOneGOP; Darksheare; meowmeow; Constitution Day; 4mycountry; Poohbah; Grampa Dave; ...
Wow, it feels good to be back. Let me tell you about an adventure I had, and a new way to remove that nasty buttock hair...
15 posted on 10/27/2004 8:52:26 AM PDT by Zavien Doombringer (Have you gotten your Viking Kittie Patch today? Freepmail Visualops or myself for details)
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To: asgardshill; BlindGuardian

Hehe Viking Kitty Zot recharge


16 posted on 10/27/2004 8:52:43 AM PDT by visualops (Get your Viking Kitty patches at http://www.visualops.com/patch.html)
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To: Zavien Doombringer

Please remember to make sure you're properly grounded when you're charging up for one of those megazots, OK, dude?

Let's roll, and let's be careful out there!


17 posted on 10/27/2004 8:54:34 AM PDT by Poohbah (SKYBIRD SKYBIRD DO NOT ANSWER...SKYBIRD SKYBIRD DO NOT ANSWER)
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To: MeekOneGOP

18 posted on 10/27/2004 8:56:04 AM PDT by Lady Jag (Used to be sciencediet but found the solution)
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To: asgardshill

Actually, that was a light in the loafers DU troll doing what it does best, imitating a pussy.


19 posted on 10/27/2004 8:57:11 AM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will ABCNNBCBS & the MSM fishwraps stop Rathering to America? Answer: NEVER!)
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To: asgardshill; nevergore
You all gotta stop!! I'm about to laugh myself into tears!!
20 posted on 10/27/2004 8:59:13 AM PDT by trussell (Unemployed intellectual...will act like a pompous ass for food!!)
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