This Bloomer man knows what happens when animals and electricity accidentally mix.

"And as best as I know it, it hit the power line," he said.

Even though the Bloomer resident did not lose power, some of his neighbors and about 800 people in the area were in the dark for about four hours.

"It's different because some were in some were out all the way down the road," he said about his neighborhood.

Power outages due to animal accidents is nothing new for Xcel Energy. Brian Elwood, an Xcel Energy spokesperson, says squirrels are the main culprit and it has been an ongoing problem especially at substations. But there has been a change in the last decade.

"In the last five to ten years we've really seen some decreases in the amount of animal contacts," said Elwood.

He says a substance, used on energized equipment, helps keep animals away. Nearby trees are also trimmed regularly and even the fencing has helped.

"We inspect that monthly to make sure no animals are getting in our sub stations," he added.

But in Bloomer, it was a power line that did the turkey in Tuesday night. Something Xcel is trying to combat using flight diverters.

"Birds will actually see the power lines when they come in contact with it, they're special colors and there is some movemement in the lines," Elwood said.

So, why not move all the lines underground? He says even though about half of the lines in Eau Claire are already below us, it comes down to cost, maintenance, and installation.

Xcel Energy says there are four main causes to power outages. The least of the problems are humans, followed by animals, lightning and the biggest problems come from trees.