Iris Tien

Airport’s Blackout Could Cost More Than Apologies

By Ross Terrell, Tasnim Shamma  |  December 18, 2017

The blackout at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Sunday may have cost more than peace of mind.

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Iris Tien, an engineering professor at Georgia Tech, said Georgia Power and airport officials should look at ways to make sure the power units are more equipped to handle an emergency like this.

“Something that comes out of this event and other events we’ve seen is that you need to have not only these functionally separated but these geographically separated back-up as well,” Tien said.

Tien said designing a power grid to withstand a fire looks different than building one to handle a natural disaster like a hurricane.

Georgia Power officials said the investigation into what happened could last through the end of the week. Officials say it will be a lengthy process before the main system is fully repaired.