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Top 7 animals to blame for major power outages

June 23, 2016

Animals have been the cause of many major power outages, but can you guess which animals are most often cited for causing these outages?

It has happened to everyone. You wake up in the middle of the night and decide to watch a little TV, only the TV won't turn on. You flip the light switch, but no lights go on. You then begin cursing the power company as you realize that you are in the middle of a power outage. When you call the power company, the prerecorded message says that they are aware of the outages in your neighborhood, but they never give a reason for the outage. It could be a number of things, including an accident, a bad storm, or a pack of radical squirrels out for vengeance. That's right, animals have been the cause of many major power outages, but can you guess which animals are most often cited for causing these outages?

Eric Limer for Popular Mechanics has pulled together a list of the top animal offenders. These four-legged fiends have caused power outages at major facilities from the Tokyo Electric Power Co to the Gitaru hydroelectric power station and even the Large Hadron Collider.

To learn more, read "7 Animals That Caused Power Outages" from Popular Mechanics.

About the Author

Alexis Gajewski | Senior Content Strategist

Alexis Gajewski has over 15 years of experience in the maintenance, reliability, operations, and manufacturing space. She joined Plant Services in 2008 and works to bring readers the news, insight, and information they need to make the right decisions for their plants. Alexis also authors “The Lighter Side of Manufacturing,” a blog that highlights the fun and innovative advances in the industrial sector. 

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