Electricity restored in Roughrider service area

Posted 2/03/10 (Wed)

A violent storm of snow, ice and wind left things cold and dark two weeks ago for thousands of residents in North Dakota. As of Monday evening, power was restored to all residents in Mercer and Oliver counties who had been left in the dark for varying lengths of time.

According to Roughrider Electric Cooperative Line Manager Tim Volk, the cooperative’s first report of trouble was called in bright and early at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 20. Roughrider soon discovered 400-plus poles in their system had been broken off by ice buildup and violent winds during the storm, up from earlier estimates of 300 felled poles. In addition to the snapped poles, hundreds of transmission lines had been snapped by the storm.