Trinidad warns downtown power outage could stretch for days

Trinidad’s downtown was set for a planned power cut starting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 12, but city officials warned the real danger was a failing pole that could have turned a routine repair into a days-long outage.

The city said power was expected to come back around 3 a.m. Wednesday, May 13, or sooner if crews finished early. But the warning around the pole problem made the stakes much higher for the blocks around Main Street and Commercial Street, where a shutdown of even a few hours can hit storefronts, offices, food service, traffic patterns and the daily rhythm of downtown Trinidad.

The city directed customers with questions about the outage area to 719-846-9843 or 719-846-6643. It also said it was launching TextPower, with customers able to sign up by texting CtyTdad to 719-509-9005 for alerts tied to city power notices.

The warning fit a broader pattern of public notice around Trinidad’s electrical system. The City of Trinidad Power & Light Department has told customers to report leaning poles, downed lines and other questionable electrical infrastructure, and to call 719-846-4441 after hours if there is a loss of power or flickering lights. That guidance underscored what made this downtown outage more than a standard maintenance window: city staff were signaling a possible failure in infrastructure that could worsen before repairs were complete.

Downtown Trinidad is the city’s commercial center, so the risk reached far beyond inconvenience. A prolonged outage could have interrupted business hours, deliveries and customer traffic while also putting pressure on residents trying to plan around the darkened blocks. For a small downtown, the difference between a scheduled overnight repair and a prolonged outage can quickly become a question of public confidence in how well the city is managing its aging system.

This was not the first time Trinidad has flagged work around Main and Commercial streets. A prior public notice also pointed to a scheduled outage in that area and listed city contacts, including Dave Bachicha and Linda Vigil, showing that the city has been warning residents about maintenance-related disruptions as it works through vulnerable parts of the grid. The city’s communications department has described itself as the primary source for timely public notices, project updates and emergency information, a reminder that the downtown outage was being treated as both a utility issue and a public safety concern.