We have further explanation behind the Superdome power outage that disrupted play for more than 30 minutes Sunday during Super Bowl XLVII between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers.
Entergy New Orleans, Inc., announced Friday that the blackout was traced to an electrical relay device, which was installed to protect the facility during a "cable failure between the switchgear and the stadium."
Entergy, an electric and gas utility serving Orleans Parish, states the identical setup was successful during a string of recent events including the New Orleans Bowl, the New Orleans Saints-Carolina Panthers clash in Week 17, and the Sugar Bowl.
During the Super Bowl, "the relay device triggered, signaling a switch to open when it should not have, causing the partial outage," the company wrote in a statement. "This device has since been removed from service and new replacement equipment is being evaluated."
A blackout during the Super Bowl isn't a moment people casually forget, but Charles Rice, president and CEO of Entergy New Orleans, says the mystery is solved.
"While some further analysis remains," Rice said, "we believe we have identified and remedied the cause of the power outage and regret the interruption that occurred during what was a showcase event for the city and state."
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.
