Swan causes power cut in 9,000 Fermanagh homes

The dead swan was later retrieved from the roof of a petrol station

A swan that hit power lines caused a power cut affecting almost 9,000 homes in County Fermanagh.

NIE said all customers affected by the power cut in the Enniskillen area have now had their power restored.

The dead swan was later retrieved from the roof of a petrol station, reports BBC News NI's Julian Fowler.

Customers in the Enniskillen, Belleek and Derrygonnelly areas were affected after the incident which happened about lunchtime on Friday.

The dead swan was retrieved from the roof

NIE said the line came down and caught the back of a vehicle on the Loughshore Road.

Gerry O'Reilly, supervisor at Lilley's Centra said it was lucky there were no casualties

'Swan didn't last two seconds'

Gerry O'Reilly, supervisor at Lilley's Centra on Enniskillen's Lough Shore Road, said he initially heard a loud bang.

"The lights went out and within seconds there was another bang, the car the cable fell on lit up like it was going to blow up," he told BBC News NI.

"The cable split, one side was across the road and the other side fell nearer; it was still live until the NIE came so we had to go out and stop the traffic.

"One person in particular was very strong-headed and drove over the live cable.

"The poor swan didn't last two seconds. Luckily nobody was filling fuel and there weren't many cars there at the time - so no casualties."

Some shops closed early as a result of the incident and traffic in the area was also badly affected.