A severe storm moved through the Alpine area on July 22. According to Area Operations Manager Shane Trussell, lighting struck the Cienega Substation, causing damage to the power transformer. The strike immediately curtailed the power supply to over 600 meters located in Presidio County, and a small portion of Brewster County.
A replacement transformer was transported roughly 50 miles to the Cienega Substation from the Alpine Supply Yard. The damaged transformer had to be removed from the pad using a crane, and the new transformer placed. While it sounds simple, any time equipment like this which weighs over 16 tons is moved, it requires a certain amount of finesse.
Then began the work of reconnecting everything to the new transformer. It’s a painstaking process that was remarkably accomplished in about 3.5 hours.
