Thanks, Rocky: Raccoon Causes Power Outage at Refinery

Early risers and insomniacs in Torrance may have noticed some flaring today at the Exxon Mobil Refinery, which kicked in after a power outage, according to the Daily Breeze. The culprit: A raccoon who "slipped past some protective barriers at a power substation at 190th Street and Prairie Avenue and sparked the outage." Power was knocked out at around 1:50 a.m. but was restored by 4:30 a.m. Afterward, the refinery initiated "the flaring to burn off hydrocarbons as a safety measure." PS: They say the raccoon survived.