A transformer explosion in North Lewiston left more than 1,100 Avista customers without electricity Thursday evening, triggering a widespread outage that stretched from 21st and Main streets up through the 12th Avenue corridor.
Avista crews initially projected power would be restored by 11:30 p.m., but service came back roughly an hour ahead of schedule, returning to affected customers around 10:30 p.m. The utility confirmed the transformer failure as the cause of the disruption.
Officers Direct Traffic as Signals Go Dark
With traffic signals knocked offline across several busy North Lewiston intersections, Lewiston police moved in to manually direct vehicles through the affected area. For approximately 30 minutes, drivers were left to treat darkened intersections as four-way stops before officers arrived to manage traffic flow. Authorities noted that some officers may have also been responding to separate, unrelated calls during the same period. Once Avista restored power, traffic signals resumed normal operation and police cleared the scene.
This is not the first power-related incident to affect Lewiston residents recently. A prior outage impacting roughly 1,100 customers was reported in the area on the same evening, underscoring the vulnerability of aging electrical infrastructure during periods of high demand.
No injuries were reported in connection with Thursday’s transformer explosion, and no structural damage to surrounding properties was mentioned by officials. Avista has not yet released details on what caused the transformer to fail.
What Comes Next: Avista is expected to assess the damaged transformer and determine whether repairs or a full replacement are needed to prevent future outages in the North Lewiston area. Residents experiencing ongoing issues are encouraged to report them directly to Avista’s outage line. Lewiston police have not indicated whether any follow-up review of the traffic-management response is planned.