Unlikely cause of power cut turns out to be 'fish dropped by bird'
A power cut that left a New Jersey community without electricity turns out to be due to an unlikely culprit - a fish apparently dropped by a bird onto a transformer.
Residents in Sayreville, a New Jersey community southwest of New York's Staten Island, were left without power on Sunday, August 13, according to Jersey Central Power and Light Company. Local police took to their Facebook page to update residents on the situation, sparking a few giggles in the process.
They wrote: "Ok Sayreville pay attention to this one! There is a large area of Lower Sayreville without power. JCP&L is reporting a [fish] was found on the transformer.
"This FISH destroyed the transformer! How did a FISH get up there??? We have a hypothesis. We are guessing a bird dropped it as it flew over. Power should be out for a few hours while repairs are made. Only in Sayreville folks only in Sayreville."
Police were quick to make light of the situation on their Facebook page (Sayreville Police Department)
Police released a sketch of the apparent suspect (Sayreville Police Department)Residents were quick to make light of the situation. One person commented: "Maybe the bird wanted grilled fish. Weekend bbq."
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Another branded it "Birdgate 2023", with one person saying: "And here I thought Fish Frys were held on Fridays..."
Sayreville Police also quickly kept the joke going, saying that despite the power outage being a "major inconvenience for so many of our residents" people should "not forget the victim in this senseless death".
Naming the fish "Gilligan" they described him as a "hard working family man". They said: "He was a father to thousands of children. The suspect was last seen flying South.
"If you see him do not try to apprehend him. Although he isn't believed to be armed he may still be very dangerous. If you have any information in this case please contact Det. John Silver who handles all of our fish cases."
People continued with their quick-witted comments, with one person pointing out: "Someone's gonna be mad when they come back for their dinner lol".
Another speculated they thought the "suspect was trying to cook the fish" while a third sided with the suspect, writing: "Oh please, the stated suspect is not the offender, rather the victim himself.
"He lost his well earned meal! I would suggest that John Silver close this case with recommendation to the power utility to put a shed on top so that the bird could pick up its meal back next time it drops."
Jersey Central Power and Light Company spokesperson Chris Hoenig said animals - usually squirrels - are a common cause of power outages but "fish are not on the list of frequent offenders".
He said an osprey was probably to blame for the outage that affected about 2,100 Sayreville customers for less than two hours. Mr Hoenig said the Sayreville area has a large presence of ospreys, which were on the state's endangered species list until less than a decade ago.
The company has a very active osprey and raptor protection program that includes monitoring of nests and relocating any that are on their equipment or too close to power lines, he said.
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Mr Hoenig, on behalf of the electric company, offered its sympathies to the osprey for losing its lunch. He said: "If you've ever dropped your ice cream cone at the fair, you know the feeling."
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