OSAKA -- A power outage Monday morning hit about 300,000 homes in central Osaka and some nearby areas, darkening some traffic lights in the nation's second-biggest business center.
According to Kansai Electric Power Co., electric power dropped at the 300,000 homes at around 11:10 a.m. due to a faulty power line.
In central Osaka, power was cut for about one minute at around 9,000 homes, with 50 being without electricity for 25 minutes.
Kepco officials said they believe that a construction crane at a site in Daito, Osaka Prefecture, touched a power line by accident.
The outage affected the Osaka Prefectural Police office in Chuo Ward for about 20 minutes, officers said.
The police traffic regulation department said three sets of traffic lights, including one at a busy intersection, were also shut down.
There were no accidents, however, and police officers at the scene directed traffic.
The emergency call system functioned without any problem thanks to an emergency electric power source, Kepco officials said.
The outage also affected Osaka Castle, not far from the prefectural police headquarters, temporarily shutting off lights in elevators and at a souvenir shop.