DPU linemen work in the canyon behind the Los Alamos Golf Course Wednesday. Photo Courtesy DPU

Power was restored to all areas of Los Alamos by around 3 p.m. Tuesday thanks to DPU linemen who spent eight hours repairing damage caused by wind and fallen trees. Photo Courtesy DPU

COUNTY NEWS RELEASE

Power has been restored to electric customers in Los Alamos after an early morning windstorm led to an electric outage for the entire townsite. Linemen from the Department of Public Utilities have turned their attention to the ski hill, which is the only area still without electricity.

Circuits 15 and 16 were restored around 2:40 p.m., bringing power back for North Community, North Mesa, and Barranca Mesa. Power was restored to residents on Fairway and in Quemazon at that time as well. If anyone is still without power, they should call the Customer Care Center at 505-662-8333 for assistance.

The outage stemmed from a “cascade of causes,” according to Stephen Marez, electrical engineering manager for DPU. Two circuits, 15 and 16, were taken out by trees that fell on power lines in the canyon behind Los Alamos Golf Course. The lines were deep enough in the canyon to make repairs more difficult than usual. Other circuits went down due to other felled trees. 

Marez estimated that about a dozen fallen trees damaged power lines in Los Alamos and that they all contributed to the widespread outage. No power poles fell in the windstorm, but the cross arms were torn from some in the wind.

Marez and crews from the DPU Electric Distribution division coordinated with Los Alamos National Laboratory personnel before restoring any power to the townsite to ensure safety for the community.