By Allison Jarrell and Andrea Swayne
Flickering lights across south Orange County Monday morning were the result of widespread low voltage issues, San Diego Gas & Electric officials said.
Reports of dimming and flickering lights were first reported at about 7:30 a.m. Monday, June 8, and the problem was resolved by 9:30 a.m., said Amber Albrecht, SDG&E spokesperson.
According to a statement released by SDG&E, the company was alerted of the issue via smart meter technology and immediately began working to resolve the power fluctuation.
SDG&E’s outage map, posted online at www.sdge.com/safety/outages/outage-map, showed that cities/communities affected included San Clemente, Talega, Dana Point, Capo Beach, San Juan Capistrano, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Hills, Ladera Ranch, Coto De Caza and Mission Viejo. SDG&E Communications Manager Hanan Eisenman said about 125,000 customers were impacted throughout south Orange County.
The cause of the outage remains under investigation, but officials have said that “crews were completing planned maintenance work on a transmission line that serves Orange County when the power fluctuations first occurred.”
SDG&E External Relations Manager Duane Cave said the transmission line in question is the one that feeds the Talega substation. Cave said the line was taken out of service to perform routine maintenance when the incident occurred.
“It appears that a device that monitors voltage failed during this work, impacting the distribution system,” the company’s statement said. “SDG&E is committed to providing reliable energy service and always working to improve reliability.”
People who have questions about the incident can contact SDG&E at 1.800.411.7343.
Discussion about this post