Power restored at Busch Gardens after squirrel causes outage

TAMPA — After a power outage kicked off a chaotic start to the weekend at Busch Gardens, the park was back up and running 2:20 p.m. Saturday.

A squirrel caught in an electrical substation caused the outage sometime before 11 a.m., according to Busch Gardens' Twitter page. Park patrons reported restaurants with no ice, long lines and trouble accessing the restrooms.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is experiencing a power outage, today, May 12. We are currently delaying entry into the park, and our ambassadors are working with TECO to restore power as soon as possible.— Busch Gardens Tampa Bay (@BuschGardens) May 12, 2018

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is experiencing a power outage, today, May 12. We are currently delaying entry into the park, and our ambassadors are working with TECO to restore power as soon as possible.

#BeerIsBack #AndSoIsOurPower! Thank you to our guests for your continued patience as we worked to resolve this issue. We hope you enjoy the rest of your day! pic.twitter.com/LnngxbvEpP— Busch Gardens Tampa Bay (@BuschGardens) May 12, 2018

#BeerIsBack #AndSoIsOurPower! Thank you to our guests for your continued patience as we worked to resolve this issue. We hope you enjoy the rest of your day! pic.twitter.com/LnngxbvEpP

Power was restored to certain parts of the park about 1:20 p.m. before it was fully restored about an hour later, said spokeswoman Karen Varga-Sinka.

Patrons can visit the park's ticket windows or email BGA.guestinformation@seaworld.com for information on refunds or obtaining complementary passes.

TECO spokeswoman Sylvia Vega said Busch Gardens was the only customer affected by the outage.

Restaurant in the front had about an hour plus wait to get food no more ice pic.twitter.com/RxAEwoma8F— Kelcie (@Cd3000) May 12, 2018

Restaurant in the front had about an hour plus wait to get food no more ice pic.twitter.com/RxAEwoma8F

Times staff writer Carl Lisciandrello contributed to this report.