Snake plunges Philippine island into darkness

An entire Philippine island lost electrical power today after a snake reportedly climbed onto a power transmission line, causing it to short out.

An entire Philippine island lost electrical power on Friday after a snake reportedly climbed onto a power transmission line, causing it to short out.

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The snake slithered on a transmission line on Bohol island, a popular tourist site, before dawn, resulting in the electrocution of the reptile and the breakdown of a power transformer, ABS-CBN television reported in its website.

The National Grid Corporation, which is in charge of power transmission, reported that the snake left Bohol without power for more than half a day until a replacement transformer was installed, the website said.

Police in Bohol confirmed that the island had a power outage until noon from an unspecified breakdown in equipment but could not confirm if a snake was involved.