A bird looking for a new home is to blame for the power being knocked out on Sturgeon Bay’s east side for approximately 20 minutes on Friday. The power outage occurred at around 10:15 a.m. when the starling flew into the 1st Avenue Substation, electrocuting itself. The outage knocked out power for Door County Medical Center, Sturgeon Bay High School, NEW Radio, the Door County YMCA, and other businesses and residences. Crews were near the substation when the outage occurred and they were able to address the problem quickly. Despite the necessary precautions, Sturgeon Bay Utilities General Manager Jim Stawicki says this time of year is usually bad for wildlife and electricity.
Stawicki apologized for the inconvenience the power outage caused residents and businesses in the area, even though it is a common occurrence. According to The Nature Conservancy, about 13 million Americans lose power to wildlife annually.
