UPDATE, 2:30 p.m. July 18
Jeff Witt, Facilities Planning & Management's director of utility services, said some cool air has been restored to affected campus buildings, offering relief. Chillers No. 3 and 4 (of five total) are coming back up this afternoon. Everything should be back to normal by sometime tonight, Witt said. "And then we should be in good shape for the remainder of the week," he added. The early morning power outage was caused by a failed lightning arrester on the transformer.
AMES, Iowa -- Power has been restored this morning after a blown transformer left the northern half of the Iowa State campus without electricity from 5:15 to approximately 7:20 a.m. today. The university is open; the priority now is to restore cooling throughout the workday.
Area mechanics are checking to make sure all building systems, including elevators, are coming back on line. Facilities Planning & Management staff say even as the chillers come back on, it will take much of the day for the systems to catch up -- so that means students, faculty and staff may feel a little uncomfortable if they are in affected buildings.
The university community is encouraged to take heat precautions, including staying hydrated and turning off any unnecessary equipment. Those who are not able to stay at work should talk with their supervisors. All systems should be fully restored by tomorrow morning.