Brief but Widespread Power Outage Hits Washington, DC Area
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ABC News(WASHINGTON) — A power outage knocked out power across Washington, D.C., with reports of outages at the White House, State Department, several museums and the University of Maryland campus.
An official with the Department of Homeland Security told ABC News that initial information showed the cause of the outage was an explosion in a southern Maryland power plant.
A spokesperson for the Potomac Electric Power Company said the utility company was in the process of restoring generating capacity.
Several Smithsonian museums reported outages and were evacuated. According to the Smithsonian, the buildings will be reopened when power is restored.
The outage knocked out power during the State Department’s daily briefing.
Power just went off in the State Dept. briefing. Hearing it’s the entire building. @marieharf says briefing will continue though…
— Alex Mallin (@alex_mallin) April 7, 2015
.@marieharf having to shine phone light on reporters asking questions here. pic.twitter.com/TF4lJYSsZX
— Alex Mallin (@alex_mallin) April 7, 2015
The White House experienced a power outage as well, but power came back within seconds. The West Wing is now using a back-up generator.
The power also went out at the Warner Theatre during Oprah Winfrey’s remarks at the Maya Angelou stamp event.
Power went out at Warner Theatre during Oprah’s remarks at Maya Angelou stamp event; finished w/o mic; dark on stage. pic.twitter.com/ntQIFWsAfh
— John R Parkinson (@jparkABC) April 7, 2015
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