KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather & SportsUPDATE: Power restored in SW Caddo Parish, mylar balloon blamed

UPDATE: Power restored in SW Caddo Parish, mylar balloon blamed

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By Carolyn Roy - bio | email
Mylar balloon after being shocked with 5000 volts of electricity during a safety demonstration. The gray on the outer surface of the balloon is an electrical tree or "Lichtenberg figure" created by the shock. (Courtesy: Jaksmata, Wikimedia Commons) Mylar balloon after being shocked with 5000 volts of electricity during a safety demonstration. The gray on the outer surface of the balloon is an electrical tree or "Lichtenberg figure" created by the shock. (Courtesy: Jaksmata, Wikimedia Commons)
SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) -

Power has been restored to more than 2,800 are in Southwest Shreveport, after mylar balloon coming into contact with a power line tripped an AEP SWEPCO circuit Monday morning.

AEP SWEPCO spokesperson Scott McCloud says it's the second time an outage has been caused in that area by a metal-coated balloon coming into contact with their equipment.

[Click here to view a demonstration of what happens when a mylar balloon comes in contact with a electric transmission line]

A similar incident knocked out power back in July, when temperatures were soaring in the triple digits.

Monday's outage lasted less than an hour, beginning at 9:15 a.m. McCloud says power was restored by 10:15a.m.

Earler reports of a wreck on Bert Kouns and Walker Road turned out not to be related to the outage.

[Click here for the AEP SWEPCO outage map]

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