Electrical power is a part of our life that is taken for granted–until it’s not there! An extreme wind, part of a quickie storm, blew up in the 2 am hour today (Monday, 7/18/16). At about 2:50 am, power went out and stayed out for the next 8 hours and 16 minutes.
What caused the outage?
A tree fell on the power line across from the Columbia Township Park at the west end. The burn marks on part of the downed tree illustrate where it hit the live line.
Crews for Consumers Energy repairs brought power back in the 11 am hour today. Below Jeff Simpson,who is part of the Columbia Township staff and also one of our firefighters, cuts up what’s left of the tree.
A power outage creates a number of inconveniences and interruptions to normal activity. This sewer pumping station, on Eagle Point Road near Lakeview West, switched to generator power. But DPW crews had to manually manipulate some of its functions until automatic control was reestablished. Township Trustee Flip Reynolds stopped by to check progress.
Those who have auxiliary generators got a chance to see their investment pay off. A steady whir could be heard every so often as one circled the lake. The rest of Clark Lake’s population knew the drill–pumps will not bring in more water so don’t use it, remember that the sewer grinder is off so go lightly, don’t open the refrigerator or the food will spoil, check the crawl space for flooding since the sump pump is out, and a charged up cell phone can be a life saver. Consumers Energy has a new system that keeps customers in touch with the electrical restoration progress. It worked well for those who have signed up for it.
The other tree observed down was in the Magic Forest portion of the Clark Lake Spirit Trail between Jefferson Road and Lakeview East. It’s still possible to pass under it, but cyclists should use great caution as you can see in this photo taken this morning.
Those trying to watch the 24/7 live DamCam feed may have missed it for a while. Recent rain has boosted the lake level slightly, and today a small amount of water could be seen going over it.
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