Power Outages Reported in Florida

02/26/2008

MIAMI (AP) - Sporadic power outages were reported across Florida on Tuesday, and the state's largest electric company said it had not determined a cause. It was unclear how many customers were affected.

Frank Reddish, Miami-Dade County's emergency management coordinator, said the outages appeared to be concentrated in the southeast, including parts of Miami, and began shortly after 1 p.m.

Jaime Hernandez, a spokesman for Miami-Dade County Department of Emergency Management, said the county is partially activating its emergency operations center. No injuries have been reported, he said.

A Florida Power & Light spokeswoman told The Miami Herald that the company is investigating the cause. FPL did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press.

By 2 p.m., parts of downtown Miami appeared to be back to normal operation, including a campus of Miami-Dade Community College and numerous stores and businesses. Traffic lights were out for a short time but appeared to be working again.

The U.S. courthouse complex, which includes a federal prison, experienced only a brief outage and is equipped with backup generators to keep the power flowing, officials said.

An official at the Miami International Airport says the facility is working on a generator backup but that no airline delays were reported.