Iowa Raccoon Falls Down, Goes “Boom”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Fire officials say a raccoon fell into an electric substation in downtown Des Moines, causing a loud boom and then a large but brief cloud of black smoke.

The Des Moines Fire Department says the raccoon toppled into MidAmerican Energy's River Hills substation at second and Center streets, shorting out some transformers. The raccoon caused a flash of light, followed by a bang and puff of thick smoke that rose above the substation adjacent to the Des Moines River.

Capt. Steve Brown says no injuries were reported in the incident, but the raccoon likely didn't survive.

A MidAmerican spokeswoman says the equipment failure may have caused a dip in power in some area homes, but that no outages were reported.