Lookout! Opossum knocks out power in the Point and Lido Beach, PSEG says

A curious critter was the culprit!

Thousands of residents in Lido Beach and Point Lookout who lost power Thursday night can blame an opossum that got itself tangled in some electrical equipment, according to an official with PSEG Long Island.

The opossum's odyssey plunged a swath of the neighboring coastal communities into darkness at 8:34 pm. That's when the "opossum made contact with some electrical equipment, shorting two circuits," said Jeremy Walsh, a PSEG Long Island spokesman.

Of the 4,290 customers who initially lost power, the vast majority, 2,807, only lost it for one second, Walsh said. More than 1,100 customers were without power for an indefinite period before it was restored, he said.

Walsh added that about 342 customers in the area remained without power shortly before 11 p.m.

Crews were working "safely and as quickly as possible to restore the rest," he said.

A brief, but widespread power outage also hit the Village of Freeport Thursday night.

PSEG Long Island does not provide power to the village.

Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy said the power outage on the village’s 138-megawatt grid lasted for four minutes and was restored shortly after 9 p.m.

It affected 12,000 customers and the cause was under investigation, Kennedy said.