Students hungering for frozen yogurt or a Frappuccino early in the evening on Wednesday were out of luck when a power outage hit Thayer Street, lasting from 7:10 p.m. to 8:05.
The outage resulted from a cable problem on Dyer Street, said David Graves, a spokesman for National Grid. Graves said 583 customers — on Thayer Street and in downtown Providence — out of a total of 400,000 in Rhode Island were affected by the outage.
Vice President for Public Affairs and University Relations Marisa Quinn specified in an e-mail to The Herald that the problem was due to "complications with a substation feeder that services the University."
The only places on Thayer Street to remain open were Brown-owned buildings, specifically the Brown Bookstore and the Sciences Library.
"As soon as the blackout began, everyone ran in here for light and shelter," said Luis Gonzalez, a sales associate at the bookstore. "Now, people don't want to leave."
Melissa Arner, the bar manager at Paragon, was perturbed by the power outage. "Financially, it's not a good gig," she said. "This is going to hurt."
Arner said the restaurant would stay open until the usual closing time — midnight — if the lights went back on. But while the lights were off, they were unable to serve any food or alcohol.
"It's all about making money," she said.
Grace Cho '12 even lost power in her dorm. She lives in Minden Hall, which is located on the corner of Waterman and Brook streets.
Approximately six Brown buildings were victims of the power outage, Quinn wrote.
As her phone chimed she said, "I don't know (what to do). I was going to go to Starbucks, but I guess I'll just go to the SciLi." Glancing up from her phone, Cho added, "This is weird."
An information session scheduled for Wednesday evening with employer Altman Vilandrie and Company at the Career Development Center had to be relocated to the CIT. "The presenters carried the food trays themselves," said Sophie Friedman '12, a student ambassador for the CDC.
