New York, Aug 17: With life virtually back to normal in the eastern United States and the Canadian province of Ontario, attention turned today to examining what caused the massive power outage that briefly paralyzed the region. Millions in the United States and Canada saw electricity and water services gradually restored at the weekend after the biggest blackout ever to hit North America snuffed out power on Thursday afternoon.


North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) chief Michehl Gent said yesterday that "virtually all" customers in the country were back on line.

Meanwhile, three transmission lines in Ohio emerged today as the focus of the inquiry into the causes of the worst power outage in us history.

In a statement, Ohio-based Firstenergy Corp. said that the three lines near Cleveland had tripped out hours before the blackout that swept across eight US states and the Canadian province of Ontario.

Firstenergy admitted that the alarm screen function of the computerised system for monitoring and controlling the transmission and generation system was not operating.

Energy secretary Spencer Abraham today promised a swift investigation of the trouble that sparked North America's worst blackout, but said he still could not pinpoint a cause.
Asked what his impression of the cause was, Abraham told a private TV channel, "it is too early to tell you an answer for that. That's why we've put together" a team to handle the probe.

Bureau Report