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Coldwater utility staff describe multi‑feed outage and generator response after severe spring storms
Summary
Staff told the board that a severe storm caused a transmission outage that left roughly 3,200 customers without power; crews and backup generators were used to restore critical circuits and the utility coordinated with ITC and AMP during the event.
Coldwater utility staff reported to the Board of Public Utilities that severe storms early on Sunday caused a transmission line trip that cut multiple feeds and left around 3,200 customers — about 43% of the system — without power before crews and backup generation restored critical service.
Killeen, director, told the board the outage began after severe weather and related transmission events. "We started reporting outages of roughly 3,200 customers, which is roughly 43% of our entire system," Killeen said, describing the scope of the event and the utility's immediate assessment that a transmission line had tripped.
Staff said the outage involved a combination of transmission work and damaged poles on a Moores Road transmission line, and that ITC (referred to in the meeting as MECI/ITC) had lines out for work related to nearby battery/solar projects. Killeen said ITC initially estimated a minimum of 16 hours to restore a transmission feed but later revised its estimate to restoration by 7 a.m. the following morning.
Because long outages were anticipated, staff coordinated with AMP and used on‑site generation to energize critical circuits. Killeen described the staged approach: bringing one generator bank online at Bennett Street, energizing a center circuit to restore downtown critical services including police and fire, and then adding additional generators to increase available capacity. "We got the first power block up and going," Killeen said, and later the team started the second bank to restore hospital service and further residential load.
Staff reported that crews worked overnight and into the morning, carefully re‑islanding and reenergizing circuits once transmission feeds were confirmed. Full system reenergization and normal operations were completed after ITC restored the transmission loop; only a small number of isolated customer outages remained afterward.
Board members and staff said they will hold an after‑action review to document what worked and what did not and to update written procedures for future incidents.
