AVENTURA, Fla. – Aventura Mall was without power Friday afternoon after an outage was reported in the area, a mall representative said.
The representative said the mall was without power for about 20 minutes. While shoppers are still allowed to roam the mall, some stores remain closed.
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Several shoppers took to social media during the incident. One person told Local 10 News that people were asked to leave the mall after the power went out.
Aventura police spokesman William Washa said the power outage caused Biscayne Boulevard to become gridlocked as several traffic lights were affected by the outage.
Drivers were asked to avoid Biscayne Boulevard between 172nd Street North and 203rd Street and to use West Dixie Highway or A1A.
Authorities said power at all intersections was restored shortly before 6 p.m., however traffic remained congested due to rainy weather and rush-hour traffic.
More than 3,000 people in the Aventura area were affected by the outage.
An Florida Power & Light representative said most customers were restored power within an hour.
FPL estimates that power will be fully restored in the area by 6:30 p.m.
Maxine Tayar said she was at Bloomingdale's when the power went out Friday afternoon at Aventura Mall.
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