Xcel Energy crews on Monday were working to repair a power pole that was damaged Friday by construction crews working on the new Lakeview Hospital in Stillwater.
Two power outages, which affected about 3,000 customers near the Lakeview Hospital construction site, were caused by construction equipment striking power lines, said Josiah Mayo, a spokesman for Xcel.
The incident damaged a power pole and other electrical equipment, Mayo said. Xcel crews responded and installed a pole holder to keep the pole upright until it is replaced, a repair that is expected to happen on Tuesday, he said.
Crews were able to restore power to customers within about two hours on Friday, but a controlled outage, which lasted less than an hour, was initiated on Sunday “to make additional necessary repairs,” he said. The Sunday outage affected about 300 customers who live near the construction site, he said.
Steven Isham, who lives in the Liberty neighborhood, just a few blocks north of the construction site, said there have been at least six or seven power outages at his house since construction on the new hospital started this summer.
“It’s so frustrating,” he said. “I would like more stability. A lot of us are able to work remotely, and this is interfering with our ability to do that. It’s just causing inconveniences for those of us, and there’s no remedy for that, just ‘Hey, we’re going to try and get the power on.’ Sometimes it goes off multiple times within the same day. It’s taxing, to say the least. I hope that they come up with a permanent resolution.”
A spokesman for HealthPartners, which is building a six-story, 400,000-square-foot hospital and clinic campus at the northeast corner of Minnesota 36 and Manning Avenue, said the organization was aware of the outage issue. “Xcel Energy officials are keeping us updated until the permanent repairs are complete,” he said.
Said Xcel’s Mayo: “We understand losing power is frustrating and we appreciate our customers’ patience.”
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