Power went out at part of CES fair due to heavy rainfall

A large part of the electronics fair CES was without power on Wednesday, mid-day local time. The power outage was due to rainfall in the desert city of Las Vegas, the organizers of the fair said.

Condensation has short-circuited one of the transformers at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the CES organization says. The outage at the electronics fair lasted a few minutes in the South Halls, according to the organization, but in the Central Hall and the bridge between them, the power cut it off for a few hours. In the Central Hall there are large stands from manufacturers such as Samsung and LG.

Not everyone was without power: some stands have emergency generators, for example to protect displayed devices. However, due to the power outage, many stands and facilities of the electronics fair were without power. In addition, the organization evacuated the halls as a precaution. As a result, part of the stock market came to a standstill on the second day.

Power outage at LG booth at CES 2018. Photo: WSJ