North Austin News

Austin Energy has implemented a permanent solution at a Southwest Austin substation following an equipment failure that necessitated re-routing power to restore service for approximately 6,400 customers. Efforts in energy conservation played a crucial role in maintaining power supply, allowing crews to focus on restoring the substation to normal operation.

At 8:20 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 22, a transformer at the Southwest Austin substation malfunctioned, resulting in power loss for about 6,400 customers. Crews responded immediately and worked overnight to investigate the outage's cause and re-route power to other circuits, successfully restoring all affected customers within three hours.

The equipment failure occurred in a component of the transformer and was not related to heat or energy demand. Staff conducted both field tests and laboratory testing on the equipment to identify potential faults and prevent future unplanned outages. Austin Energy also considered multiple backup solutions if repairs were deemed unfeasible. Upon completing these tests, it was determined safe to proceed with permanent repairs.

On Friday morning at 10 a.m., Aug. 23, Austin Energy requested nearby customers conserve energy while repair work continued. Due to customer cooperation and slightly cooler temperatures that day, the temporary power re-routing remained stable as technicians completed permanent repairs and restored the transformer.