Squirrels damage line, knock out power in downtown Bend; 1,400 affected Pacific Power BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A power outage apparently caused by squirrels damaging a line hit downtown Bend Tuesday morning, affecting more than 1,400 Pacific Power customers, the utility reported. The outage was first reported at 8:21 a.m., according to Pacific Power's online outage map. Pacific Power spokesman Tom Gauntt said the "cause looks to be squirrels," after earlier indications it could have been caused by a bird. Crews were called in, and the initial estimate said power would be restored before 11:30 a.m. But Gauntt said crews "might be able to restore (service) more quickly by rerouting power around the damage."