New transformer still days away for hundreds in Osawatomie without power - KMBC Kansas City
New transformer is still days away for hundreds in Osawatomie
New transformer still days away for hundreds in Osawatomie without power
The current transformer at the local substation is ruined beyond repair and will take several more days for a new one to be installed
Right now, south of Kansas City, down 169 Highway, the town of Osawatomie is out of power.
For hundreds, it's their third day in the dark.
Neighbors are teaming up as they wait for repairs as a new transformer remains en route to the town.
The current transformer at the local substation is ruined beyond repair.
The power situation in town is still tenuous. For those with power, the city is asking people to reduce their power usage. School in the area has even been canceled due to the ongoing issue.
Thursday afternoon, power dipped out for everyone for about 25 minutes. It caused the two stoplights in town to be replaced with stop signs. The city says the issue is a combination of infrastructure and weather.
But for those 300 people who have been without since Tuesday night, the city has set up a shelter with food and power for them.
“I'm frustrated with the situation we can't change,” resident Gary Brennan said. “Yeah, I'm frustrated with that. But, I'm not disappointed in being able to be someplace like this - where we can come and not necessarily have recovery time, but it's a time where we can be with each other and see each other,”
Once the new transformer arrives, sometime tonight or tomorrow, there’s still another 18 hours of work to get it in place.
City Manager Bret Glendening hopes that power will be restored by midday Saturday.
"These are things that you can't plan for. You can't anticipate them. There's no signs the transformer gives you that it's about to fail," Glendening said. "There's nothing you can do – it's only about how you manage the crisis after the fact, which is trying to get as many people back on as you can."
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: nuclear
Nuclear energy provides almost 20 percent of the U.S. electricity supply. Advocates have called for an expanded role for nuclear as an emissions-free fuel source. But the economics of building new reactors are daunting. In addition, lingering safety concerns are an institutionalized part of the calculation of nuclear regulation, and highly radioactive nuclear waste remains a can that public officials have been inclined to kick down the road. The Energy Information Administration projects a sharp decline in nuclear power generation over the next decade, as new nuclear plants — two are planned — are more than offset by anticipated retirements of several operating reactors.