Residents in Newport News, Virginia, experienced a widespread power outage Saturday night that left about 11,700 people without electricity, and according to multiple reports, a snake triggered it.
The outage reportedly affected residents in Kiln Creek, central Newport News and Christopher Newport University. Dominion Energy officials confirmed that the outage, which started around 9 p.m. was caused by a snake that came into contact with a transformer in a high-voltage area, WTKR reported.
Fortunately, crews were quick to respond, restoring power to all affected customers by about 10:30 p.m. It is not known what type of snake caused the outage, UPI reported.
A similar incident occurred in July when Alabama residents experienced two separate power outages after snakes disrupted the power supply. (RELATED: Unlikely Culprits Cause Two Major Power Outages In A Month)
The outage began around 9 a.m. in the northern part of the state when a snake ventured into the Athens Primary Substation. This resulted in several cities being left without power for an hour.
Earlier in July, another large snake disrupted power in Alabama after climbing into a substation. In each of these cases, the unsuspecting serpents lost their lives during the incidents.
However, snakes aren’t the only reptile that has caused problems for city residents. Lake Worth, Florida went through a large-scale power outage in December 2022 after an iguana hit a transformer with its tail. The lizard also perished during the incident.
