Squirrel causes power outage

KALISPELL - A squirrel's life was cut short Monday morning when it got into a circuit breaker at the Green Acres power substation on the south end of Kalispell.

The rodent's untimely demise cut power to nearly 4,000 homes and businesses, mostly on the south and east sides of Kalispell and downtown, according to Flathead Electric Cooperative spokeswoman Wendy Ostrom Price. Some homes on the west side of the city reported power outages as well, she said.

The Green Acres substation, located on Fifth Avenue East near Western Building Center, "feeds a lot of lines," Ostrom Price said. The co-op got reports of outages from Main Street to Airport Road.

About 3,900 members were out of power, she said. The first report came in shortly after 8 a.m.

Crews worked to reroute power. By about 9:30 a.m., electricity had been restored to all but 1,400 customers. Power was fully restored by about 11 a.m., Ostrom Price said.

The outage blacked out traffic lights in downtown Kalispell, but no accidents were reported.

- Hagadone News Network