The Oconto Falls City Council meeting proceeded Nov. 12 with two department heads distracted by emergencies.
The council was wrapping up a budget hearing and moving into its regular monthly meeting when police and fire crews were called to a traffic accident at state Highway 22 and U.S. Highway 141 in the Town of Stiles at 5:57 p.m.
Fire Chief Tim Magnin and other fire personnel bolted from the room and headed for the new fire station down the street.
Just after 6 p.m., the lights went out at City Hall and across the city, leaving the city council in the dark — their faces lit only by the light from their laptop computer screens.
After a few moments, the building’s generators kicked in and the meeting proceeded, but it soon became clear the outage covered a large part of the city.
Greg Kuhn, general manager of Oconto Falls Municipal Utilities, continued to participate in the council meeting but left the room several times to get updates from his staff.
Officials said a WE Energies transformer had blown near HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital. It took crews about an hour to restore power.
Magnin returned from the accident scene around 7:30 p.m.
wbluhm@newmedia-wi.com
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