Dominion Energy representatives say that the massive power outages that affected thousands of homes in Alexandria and Arlington last Friday (October 23) were “unique,” and caused by a piece of equipment that failed at its Glebe Road substation.
“This was a unique. Typically, you might experience an outage on one single circuit,” Tim Sargeant, Dominion Energy’s external affairs manager in Northern Virginia, told City Council on Tuesday night. “Needless to say the outage occurred on multiple circuits.”
Sargeant reported that at around 7 p.m., a piece of equipment at the station failed, which caused an outage to 16,504 customers.
“Electric service was restored to 11,247 customers within one minute with the remaining customers restored in increments ranging from 53 minutes to 80 minutes,” Sargeant said. “After the first restoration, approximately 8,000 customers experienced multiple moments of brief service interruptions during the next two hours.”
Then at around 9:15 p.m., another outage affected 8,017 customers after Dominion rerouted electric service to other circuits.
“The additional load on the circuit triggered protective devices that interrupted service as a precaution, as service was restored one of those customers in increments of 18 minutes, 14 minutes, and seven minutes,” Sargeant said, adding that Dominion will send the city a report on recent outages.
City Councilman John Taylor Chapman said that power outages in Alexandria have been too frequent.
Mayor Justin Wilson, for instance, listed outages on social media on May 10, June 17, July 7, July 22, August 2, August 8, October 12 and October 17.
“That does seem like a lot of outages for a pretty short amount of time,” Chapman said. “We definitely want our residents to believe that they have reliable power.”
Wilson said that he getting carryout at a restaurant on Mount Vernon Avenue when the lights went out.
“I did watch two restaurants right in front of me close down, because they just gave up because of power going on and off and customer after customer walking up and being told to go away,” Wilson said. “To have a Friday night off, it’s heartbreaking for them. That’s a lot of lost revenue.”
There are widespread power outages in Alexandria and Arlington tonight. Dominion Energy is investigating the cause, and has provided an estimated restoration time of 1am. If your power is out, please report it at https://t.co/rjdvsX47E1
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) October 23, 2020
Recent Stories
Police continue to investigate two suspicious deaths in Alexandria this week — one in the Braddock neighborhood and another at Four Mile Run. Telemundo reported the victim found in Four…
The body of the man found at Four Mile Run Park on Tuesday has been identified as Kevin Isaías of El Salvador by Telemundo 44, though police won’t confirm the…
A race through Old Town this weekend will cause some road closures on Saturday and Sunday. The PNC Parkway Classic is scheduled for Sunday, April 28. The city said in…
Medians, reduced crossing distances and curb extensions are just a few of the roadway changes being proposed for four intersections with Mount Vernon Avenue in Arlandria. The preferred design options…
For many remote workers, a messy home is distracting.
You’re getting pulled into meetings, and your unread emails keep ticking up. But you can’t focus because pet hair tumbleweeds keep floating across the floor, your desk has a fine layer of dust and you keep your video off in meetings so no one sees the chaos behind you.
It’s no secret a dirty home is distracting and even adds stress to your life. And who has the energy to clean after work? That’s why it’s smart to enlist the help of professionals, like Well-Paid Maids.
Monarch Montessori School is now enrolling infants, toddlers and three year-olds for its full-time Montessori program. We offer a seamless enrollment process which involves submitting an application for review, paying the enrollment fee and submitting the remaining enrollment materials before your proposed start date.
At Monarch Montessori School, we aim to provide an authentic Montessori learning experience. At our Alexandria location, we currently have 8 openings in our Primary classroom (ages 3-6), and 6 openings in our Toddler classroom. Additionally, there are 3 infant openings at this time.
Our first floor space is an open concept. Infants and toddlers share the same large classroom. Children ages 3-6 are in two classrooms on our second floor. Each classroom has one lead and assistant guide. We offer a year-round program, with intermittent breaks for Spring Break and Winter Break.
Scholarship Fund of Alexandria Annual Gala & Auction
Do good while having a good time at the Scholarship Fund of Alexandria’s 38th Annual Gala and Auction at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center. The fun begins with a 2-hour open bar reception while mingling with 499 other Alexandrians who
