Wife and I just noticed a flash of lightning outside and a couple seconds later heard thunder and our lights flickered like we were going to lose power. What is happening here?
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Utility Switchgear expert here. Many comments here are potential reasons. One common reason is tree branches or debris cause a short between the power lines. There are devices called Reclosers which are specifically designed to turn power off once that short is recognized, and then return power back on, aka ‘reclose’, as little as 0.15 seconds later. This is so quick, you may not even notice lights dim. The short circuit is often temporary in these cases where tree branches fall off or the debris clears so power can be restored in less than a second. If the debris is still present after the first ‘reclose’ the device may try again two or three more times before turning power off until crews can fix the problem.
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