Brief power outage affects 5,500
HOWARD COUNTY, MARYLAND - The 5,500 Howard County residents who lost power the morning of July 2 have a squirrel to thank.
"Believe it or not, that's not that uncommon," said Duke Energy spokeswoman Angeline Protogere. "A squirrel interfered with some of the equipment," she said. The squirrel caused a power shortage at one of the substations located at 401 S. Main St., Protogere said.
The power shortage occurred just before 9 a.m. Many facilities restored power within about an hour. The shortage affected nearly 2,000 people in Kokomo and nearly 3,600 in the surrounding area. In total, 5,564 lost power.
In the meantime, local law enforcement is trying to get stop signs to the traffic lights that are still out, Police Sgt. Jeff McKay said. Anytime a traffic light is out, McKay said the intersection should be treated as a four-way stop.
Related News

Tunisia moves ahead with smart electricity grid
TUNIS - The Tunisian parliament has approved taking a $131.7 million loan from the French Development Agency for the implementation of a smart grid project.
Parliament passed legislation regarding the 400 million dinar ($131.7 million) loan plus a grant of $1.1 million.
The loan, to be repaid over 20 years with a grace period of up to 7 years, is part of the Tunisian government’s efforts to establish a strategy of energy switching aimed at reducing costs and enhancing operational efficiency.
The move to the smart grid had been postponed after the Tunisian Company of Electricity and Gas (STEG) announced in March 2017…