Updated: Power outage hits Acton Middle School
Principal Justin Cameron said staff expected a regular dismissal at 1:20 p.m.
The Ellen Garrison Building at Acton Middle School had to switch to backup power Wednesday following a midday blackout.
Power went out around noon after students finished eating lunch, Principal Justin Cameron wrote in an email to families.
The school’s generator was “operating as designed,” he said, and powering roughly 75% of the building.
Lights stayed on in bathrooms and “all occupied spaces,” including “active learning areas.”
Crews restored power around 1 p.m., Acton Municipal Light Plant Director Jason Bulger told The Acton Bridge.
He said the problem stemmed from a “recloser” system meant to automatically clear small problems, such as a rodent stepping on a power line or a tree branch hitting the line, by momentarily flicking power off.
If this doesn’t fix the issue, or if the system misfires, it can get stuck in its “off” position.
Bulger said crews were still investigating which of those scenarios happened.
