SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) -- A squirrel was blamed for a power outage at South Lake Tahoe that left about 3,200 Sierra Pacific Power Co. customers without electricity. Power was restored Tuesday after about 25 minutes, utility officials said.
South Lake Tahoe firefighters and Sierra Pacific said the squirrel was on wires atop the power pole when it was electrocuted, caught fire and fell to the ground, causing a fire around the power pole.
Nearby residents used fire extinguishers to douse the flames before firefighters arrived.
The squirrel did not survive.
''He looked like he had been electrocuted,'' said Marty Creel, a South Lake Tahoe firefighter from Engine 3. ''He was still and the tail was sticking straight out with some charring.''
Animals such as birds have been known to cause power surges. But Tuesday's incident was larger than most, said Sierra Pacific spokeswoman Faye Andersen.
''This does happen periodically. Poor little guy,'' Andersen said.
