Report: Falling trees to blame for massive outages during Winter Storm Alfred

WFSB ^

[matt04]

A report released Thursday said downed trees rather than transmission problems were largely to blame for massive power outages during Winter Storm Alfred last October.

The report released by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and North American Electric Reliability Corp. said 74 transmission lines and 44 transmission substations experienced outages during Winter Storm Alfred, and that resulted in less than 5 percent of the outages during the peak of the storm.

Most of the outages, according to the report, lasted no fewer than two days and lasted no longer than five days.

The remainder of the outages, which was roughly three-quarters, occurred when healthy trees, most that were located out of the utility company's reach, fell onto power lines when trees began to fall from the weight of the heavy snow.

[matt04]

No S*%t! Only a government agency would be too dumb to drive around and see thousands of trees and branches down on wires and say, "We need a report to figure out why so many people lost power."

I counted at least 15 large branches or whole trees down, leaves still on the trees, on wires within a mile or so of my house after the storm, covered in almost two feet of heavy wet snow.

[Jack Hydrazine]

They are giving hames to winter storms like they do tropical hurricanes?

Why not just give strong winter storms that hit the PacNW that come down from the Aleutians (I call them, “polarcanes”) them names, too!

[matt04]

I believe that is strictly a CT tradition that has been going in since the 70’s.

[libertarian27]

I heard that report on the radio today ...all day ...and had your same reaction... lol

[Little Bill]

AS long as NU keeps jacking up the Dividend I could Care less.

[Raycpa]

I’m certain it was Bush and Cheney.

[Mister Da]

Neighborhoods with underground power lines have far fewer power outages as a result of storms.

During hurricane Frederick (1979), my mother-in-law never lost power, while ours was out 3 weeks. Her neighborhood had underground power lines, ours did not.

[richmwill]

This storm literally drove me to move out of an apartment I lived in for 9 years. It was in a rural section of Upstate New York, and the power would go out there all the time. At least once every two months, often much more than that. When that storm passed through, I knew it would be a bad one. My power ended up being out for 6 days. Packed my belongings, notified the landlord that I was moving out (luckily I was on a month-to-month lease), and moved out. That storm was the final straw for me, as far as living in that area.