A transformer explosion in North Lewiston knocked out electricity for more than 1,100 Avista customers Thursday evening, triggering a temporary traffic response from local police and leaving portions of the city without power for several hours.
The outage stretched across a broad section of North Lewiston, affecting neighborhoods from 21st and Main streets north toward 12th Avenue. Avista crews initially projected power would be restored by 11:30 p.m., but service was brought back roughly an hour ahead of schedule, around 10:30 p.m.
Officers Direct Traffic as Signals Go Dark
With traffic signals down across several busy intersections, Lewiston police stepped in to manage vehicle flow. For approximately 30 minutes, drivers navigated the darkened corridors without functioning signals while officers worked to keep traffic moving safely. Authorities noted that some officers may have been responding to unrelated calls during the same period. Normal traffic operations resumed once power was restored.
This is the second significant power disruption to affect Lewiston in recent weeks, underscoring the strain that infrastructure failures can place on city services and public safety response. The North Lewiston corridor sees heavy evening traffic, making the rapid police response critical to preventing accidents during the blackout window.
What Comes Next
Avista has not publicly released details on the cause of the transformer failure or whether additional infrastructure upgrades are planned for the affected area. Residents and city officials will likely be watching for any follow-up assessment from the utility. Lewiston drivers are encouraged to treat any non-functioning traffic signal as a four-way stop, as required under Idaho law, should future outages occur.