THOUSAND OAKS : Power Outage Is Triggered by Rat
About 2,900 homes and businesses in northwest Thousand Oaks lost their electricity for about an hour Friday morning when a rat climbed on top of a power pole, officials said.
Power was out from 1:41 to 2:45 a.m. for customers on the north side of Thames Street west of Dover Avenue, said Christina Bradley, area manager for Southern California Edison.
Los Robles Regional Medical Center also was affected, but “the emergency backup equipment kicked in immediately, and we had no complications,” said Helen Mitchell, a hospital spokeswoman.
The rat was electrocuted when it came in contact with a piece of equipment that connects an underground cable to an overhead line, Bradley said.
“This type of thing happens from time to time, but more often in the rural areas,” Bradley said. “More often, we have birds that do this.”
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