Large area of Edmonton loses power overnight, mouse not responsible
EDMONTON — An unlikely culprit was falsely accused of a power outage that left a large area in the city without power Monday morning, including the Victoria Golf Course.
A mouse was found dead at the golf course at 12130 River Road after it tried to chew through wires in a power box Monday morning, course staff said.
While the mouse was found to have caused damage to the wiring, the rodent’s curiosity did not cause a more widespread power outage between 79th Street to 136th Street and 82nd Avenue to 112th Avenue, said Epcor spokesman Tim le Riche.
“The mouse may have initially caused a small outage at the golf course, but the widespread outage was caused by failure on a relay mechanism,” le Riche said.
The confusion started early Monday morning when one employee on the golf course said she heard a loud boom and shortly after found the body of the animal.
While this is not the first time an animal has chewed through power wires at the Victoria Golf Course, this is the longest in recent memory it has gone without power due to unwanted pests, explained Matteo Piscopo, an assistant professional at the course.
Usually squirrels are the cause of the problem, not mice, he said. “It’s unreal,” Piscopo said. “Something so little can cause so much damage.” The course will be out of power for most of the day, but is still operating with all the tee times full, said Piscopo.
“We are pretty much doing everything manually right now,” he said. “We are very busy but we are managing. But it will be nice once the power comes back on, because we are walking around with flashlights in the pro shop and office.”
Costs for the damaged power unit has not been established yet, but Piscopo said it looks like the small culprit did a number on the unit and it might need to be completely replaced.
