UPDATE: Super says blown transformer led to VMA power outage

By FRANCISCO E. JIMENEZ
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com

SBCISD

San Benito Veterans Memorial Academy was without power for nearly five hours Wednesday.

It was at approximately 9:30 a.m. when the lights went out at the campus, and according to San Benito CISD Superintendent of Schools Antonio G. Limón, the power outage was due to a transformer that had blown as a result of that morning’s downpour.

Limón said he was falsely informed about a tractor hitting a utility pole, which is what was initially reported as the cause of the outage.

Students were not sent home as classes were held at the regularly scheduled times, Limón said, further remarking that VMA students were fed sandwiches and salads for lunch.

The power was not restored at the academy until about 1:45 p.m. Wednesday.

“Our main issue throughout the whole thing was safety, and I believe we handled it well,” Limón said in response to parents who disagreed with the decision to continue classes. “Our students were safe, it took a bit longer (to restore power) but we were still able to feed the students and provide a safe classroom experience.”