Power Outages

Power outages are an occasional reality, particularly in remote areas. While we work hard to minimize disruptions, it is important to know more about outages, their causes, and how they are addressed to ensure electricity is restored efficiently and safely.

What Causes Power Outages?

Power outages occur for a variety of reasons. The most common causes include:

• Weather-Related Issues: Snowstorms, high winds, lightning, and ice can damage power lines or cause tree branches to fall, disrupting service. Even if the weather is relatively mild at your location, storm events elsewhere may impact your service. Winter storms are a threat to electrical equipment when snow and ice build up on power lines and tree limbs. The weight of the snow and ice can cause wires to break. Tree limbs also become heavy with snow and ice, causing them to break and fall into power lines.
• Equipment Issues: Normal wear and tear or unexpected equipment failure can lead to outages.
• Accidents and Wildlife: Vehicle collisions with utility poles, homeowners working on projects such as tree trimming that end up contacting power lines, dig-ins to primary wire by homeowners and/ or contractors, or animals interfering with electrical equipment are less common but still significant causes of outages.
• Transmission or Supply Line Disruptions: Outages can happen when the main power supply lines we rely on, managed by external transmission providers such as Black Hills Energy, Xcel, or Tri-State Generation and Transmission, experience an issue. Because these lines deliver electricity to us to distribute on Sangre de Cristo Electric Association’s (SDCEA) lines, we are unable to provide power to your home until the provider resolves the problem. Once their repairs are complete, power will flow through our system, allowing us to restore electricity to your location as quickly as possible.

How Is Restoration Prioritized?

To restore service to the greatest number of people in the shortest amount of time, repairs are prioritized as follows:

• Fix large transmission lines supplying power to substations.
• Repair substations that distribute electricity to many households.
• Address issues with smaller distribution lines impacting fewer residents.

Repairs Take Time

Outage restoration can vary in complexity and time based on several factors such as distance, location, and weather conditions.

• Reaching outage sites: Restoring power in rural areas can require crews to hike, snowshoe, or snowmobile with equipment or travel long distances, often in challenging conditions like icy or snow-covered roads.
• Identifying the cause: Pinpointing the exact issue, particularly in rugged or remote terrain, can add time — especially during nighttime or severe weather. Removing a branch from a line is quick and relatively simple. Replacing a broken power pole or digging up the buried cable to find and repair a fault is a much longer process.

Restoring Power As Quickly & Safely As Possible

Our hardworking crews are on call 24 hours, 7-days-a-wekk to restore power safely and efficiently. Even in adverse weather, they work tirelessly to ensure your household regains access to electricity as quickly as possible while prioritizing their safety and yours.

SDCEA likes to restore power as quickly as possible after an outage, but it is even more important that our employees go home safely to their families at the end of the day. Our crews are trained to take the time and safety measures they need before making repairs to electrical equipment.

Crews do occasionally break to eat, rest, and change equipment or clothing. They are also mandated to rest and come off the line after a designated number of hours by safety regulation standards and conditions on the ground.

What About Wildfire?

While this may increase an outage’s frequency and length, to reduce wildfire risks, we adjust system settings during high-risk periods to shut off power at the smallest signs of disruption. It ensures greater community safety. Unlike some utilities, we avoid preemptive shutoffs and favor thorough inspections before restoring power.

Why Do Lights Blink?

Blinking or flickering lights often occur as the system works to maintain power. During severe weather, this may result from tree branches brushing against power lines or temporary disruptions that resolve automatically.

A blink is a brief power interruption that is completely normal and plays an important role in our electrical system. Despite routine tree trimming near power lines, strong winds can sometimes cause trees to touch the wires. When this happens, your lights might flicker, or you could lose power for a few seconds as the system works to address the issue. This protective measure prevents longer outages, limiting the disruption to just a few moments.

• Trees and Branches: Storms can cause branches to touch or fall on power lines, creating a short circuit. This prompts a recloser, a device that temporarily cuts power to fix the problem, resulting in blinking lights.
• Lightning and Thunder: A strong flash of lightning or a loud thunderclap can affect the main power supply, causing lights to blink.
• Ice and Snow Buildup: In severe weather, ice can accumulate on power lines, making them sway and occasionally touch each other. This can lead to brief power disruptions or blinking lights.

Stay Informed

During outages, you can find updates and information on our website, SDCEA’s social media pages, and through direct calls. Please note that limited communication in the field — such as no cell service — may delay update availability.

Thank you for trusting us to power your home and business — we appreciate your patience and understanding.