Community Corner
Breaker Failure Caused Brick Power Outages, JCP&L Says
The company is taking steps to make sure the power stays on through the holiday weekend while it fixes the equipment, an official said.
BRICK, NJ — With the Memorial Day weekend approaching, Jersey Central Power & Light officials say they are working to prevent a repeat of power outages that shut down traffic signals and disrupted evenings in Brick Township this week.
A breaker that failed at the company's Laurelton substation caused the outage Monday afternoon that left more than 7,500 homes and businesses without electricity, said Jennifer Young, a spokeswoman for JCP&L. That substation serves about 7,200 customers in Brick and more than 300 in Lakewood, she said.
The first outage Monday happened about 4:15 p.m. and though power was restored briefly for some parts of Brick, it went out a second time about 7 p.m. Monday while repairs were under way. Power was restored to most of the customers by about 8 p.m.
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The power outage on Wednesday evening that affected more than 3,200 customers happened as crews were continuing repairs on the breaker that failed, Young said.
The outages shut down traffic signals on Routes 88 and 70, Chambers Bridge Road and Princeton Avenue, and on Monday evening plunged the Brick Township Schools' preschool lottery meeting in the Brick Township High School auditorium into darkness just as the drawing got under way.
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It was not clear what caused the breaker to fail, she said.
"That's part of longer-term investigation," Young said. "We'll be assessing it to make sure the right equipment is in there to make substation as reliable as possible."
With Memorial Day weekend — with its anticipated influx of tourists and visitors — a day away, JCP&L is looking at options to ensure the substation doesn't fail over the holiday weekend, she said.
"We understand that this is a very sensitive weekend for the area," Young said. "We're looking at possibly bringing in a mobile substation just in case." Other options are being considered as well, she said.
"We want to make sure the power stays on," Young said.
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