Breakdown of energy supply systems

A power outage that disrupted phone and internet service at three schools on Leesville Road led Wake County school officials to dismiss students early Wednesday, prompting concerns from parents who said they had difficulty contacting the schools.
According to Duke Energy, an equipment failure on an underground power line caused the outage in the area near Leesville Road, affecting Leesville Road Elementary School, Leesville Road Middle School and Leesville Road High School.
Wake County school officials said more than 3,000 students are split between the three campuses, with the high school having the most students.
Duke Energy said power was restored between 10 and 11 a.m. Wednesday. However, the outage interrupted school operations, and the district notified parents about an early dismissal that began at 11:15 a.m.
Parents gathered at the schools to pick up their children after learning of the dismissal.
"I have a middle schooler and I have an elementary schooler, so I was just trying to get here as quick as I could," parent Shatoya Atkins said.
Atkins said she was surprised by the scope of the outage.
"I was kind of like, what in the world? Did something happen for the power to go out for the whole road?" she said.
Parent Claudia Scott said the outage left the schools without power or phone service.
"There was no power, no phones, and so it was all the schools, Leesville elementary, middle, and high," Scott said.
Atkins said she immediately left work after learning about the early dismissal because her children ride the bus.
"With my kids being bus riders, that was very nerve-wracking to me. So I just told my supervisor, 'Hey, I got to go.' I kind of wrapped up what I could and get on my way because I didn't want them to sit here also waiting for buses," Atkins said.
Scott said she became concerned when she was unable to contact the school and could not track her child's bus.
"I was nervous because I couldn't call or get a hold of the teacher. So she finally sent me a message that she had internet, because I didn't know when the bus was coming. I couldn't track it on the app either," Scott said.
While some parents picked up students at the schools, buses transported other students home.
Parents said they still have questions about what caused the outage.
"I wonder what happened though. That is what I do want to know because the whole school, the whole road, all the schools? Yeah, I wonder what happened," Atkins said.
Duke Energy said it could not provide the number of customers affected by the outage or specify what caused the equipment failure. Wake County school officials also sent text message alerts to parents about the disruption and early dismissal.