Calcutta, May 8: Rain and thunder threatened to spoil the Knight Riders’ party this evening, but they also have a reason to thank the angry sky.

For, the same rain and thunder ensured there wasn’t a power-cut rerun at the Eden, or anywhere else in the city.

This even though lightning and thunder struck the Bakreswar power plant today, leading to the collapse of all its four units.

The breakdown, following a snag in the transmission network, could have led to a major power crisis in the city and the districts. But the Nor’wester brought the mercury level down, and with it the demand for electricity.

The four units were together generating about 750MW when they crashed. But the power demand had also dipped by nearly 1,000MW.

“We were particularly concerned about power cuts in Calcutta because of the IPL match at Eden Gardens. However, the thunderstorm in the city and the districts brought down the demand sharply and there was no problem,” a power department official said.

Calcutta recorded a wind-speed of 63kmph at 7.05pm and 7.7mm of rain today.

According to officials of the West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL), thunder and lightning struck the Bakreswar transmission lines thrice between 5.10pm and 5.30pm.

“By 5.30pm, two 220KV transmission lines at Satgachhia in Burdwan, one 400KV line in Arambagh and a 400KV line in Jeerut in North 24-Parganas had tripped. Under the impact, the four units at Bakreswar collapsed,” said a senior official.

S. Mahapatra, WBPDCL managing director, said two of the lines had been repaired. “We have been able to start one of the units. We hope to start the other three by tonight.”

The power department was worried about another “factor”. “Since yesterday, governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi has been observing a voluntary two-hour power cut at Raj Bhavan. Had there been widespread power cuts today, it would have been embarrassing for us. We heaved a sigh of relief after we took a stock of the situation,” an official said.