More high strangeness in Texas. This is a recurrence of an event farther north on December 9th. Dust and mist are not causes of power poles bursting into fire. Some type of electrical bursts would explain it, as well as the loss of backup power you will hear in the news report.
Thousands of people in the area are waking up without power.
Austin Energy says up to 50 pole fires sparked overnight due to dirt and moisture on equipment, causing power outages for about 4,000 customers.
Experts say the mist in the air Friday morning turned dust on electric Poles to mud, which created the sparks.
There have also been reports of outages for Pedernales Electric customers. Officials ask those customers to call 888-883-3379 to report an outage.
Austin Energy says 16 crews are working to restore power in 32 locations.
KVUE.com
Thousands of people in the area are waking up without power.
Austin Energy says up to 50 pole fires sparked overnight due to dirt and moisture on equipment, causing power outages for about 4,000 customers.
Experts say the mist in the air Friday morning turned dust on electric Poles to mud, which created the sparks.
There have also been reports of outages for Pedernales Electric customers. Officials ask those customers to call 888-883-3379 to report an outage.
Austin Energy says 16 crews are working to restore power in 32 locations.
KVUE.com
Read more at - http://www.sott.net/article/255275-More-electric-power-poles-burst-into-flames-in-Texas
Comment: Last time we checked, mist and dust don't cause power poles to burst into flames. It would be great to hear more detailed reports, but it sounds like another case of St. Elmo's fire, a plasma phenomenon caused by an electric discharge. The Wiki page on St. Elmo's says it can be generated by thunderstorms or volcanic eruptions, but another possibility is electric discharge from incoming bolides.
Sunday, 9th December 2012: Power poles burst into flames in Texas one day before Fireball sightings