NEW ORLEANS -- The company that supplied electricity to the Super Bowl says the blackout that halted the big game was caused by a device it installed specially to prevent a power failure.
But the utility stopped short of taking all the blame and said Friday that it is looking into whether the electrical relay at fault had a design flaw or a manufacturing defect.The relay was installed as part of a project begun in 2011 to upgrade the electrical system serving the Superdome in anticipation of the championship game.The equipment was supposed to guard against problems in the cable that links the power grid with lines that go into the stadium."The purpose of it was to provide a newer, more advanced type of protection for the Superdome," Dennis Dawsey, an executive with Entergy Corp., owner of New Orleans' main utility, told the City Council.Entergy officials said the relay functioned with no problems during January's Sugar Bowl and other earlier events. It has been removed and will be replaced.All systems at the Superdome are now working, said Doug Thornton, an executive with SMG, which manages the stadium for the state.Sunday's power failure cut lights to about half the stadium, halting play and interrupting the nation's most-watched sporting event for 34 minutes.Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
