HOUSTON – A power outage at the Galleria this morning left several businesses with no power for hours.
According to CenterPoint Energy, an underground transformer blew or failed. It took crews several hours once they were notified of the outage to make repairs.
Power went on and off at the Shell station at the corner of 610 West Loop and Westheimer, frustrating customers who were in the middle of filling up their gas tanks when the pumps shut off.
"Off and on. Off and on," said Shell clerk Victoria Stewart, explaining her chaotic morning. "We had to go back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. Bag the pumps. Come back. Unbag the pumps. Come back. Set the system again because it would turn off."
Across the street, Neiman Marcus closed for about three hours until power was fully restored. Back-up generators kept Dillard's in business so customers like Gayle Wilson and Karen Dunn could continue shopping.
"Oh nothing interferes with shopping," said Wilson.
"We could shop in the dark," Dunn laughed. "We might even have a flashlight in our purse for all we know."
A CenterPoint spokesperson told Local 2 they were notified just before 7am that the power was out. Crews fixed the problem before noon.