Purgatory Resort closed mid-day Thursday after a tree fell through a power line causing an electrical outage.
Wind blew a large Ponderosa into a power line near the top of Lift 2. Crews were working to repair the line Thursday afternoon, said Indiana Reed, spokeswoman with La Plata Electrical Association.
The outage occurred about 11:10 a.m., and at one point, more than 500 customers in the area were without power, she said.
Crews identified the outage within an hour, and by 12:45 p.m., power was restored to residential customers.
The resort used auxiliary power to get people off the three lifts that were in operation Thursday, Purgatory spokeswoman Kim Oyler said.
The staff also used buses to bring skiers and snowboarders to the bottom of the mountain, because some of the lower terrain remains closed.
Purgatory is expected to have electricity to continue making snow Thursday night and expects to open lower terrain on Friday, Oyler said.
It also plans to open three more trails, she said.
Oyler could not say exactly how many skiers were on the mountain Thursday, but said it was a lighter day for the resort.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
