> there's always something that tries to power everything back on automatically after exactly 30, 60, 120 and 240 seconds
Sounds like a recloser, which tries a number of times to restore power under the assumption that most faults are transient (for instance, a branch falling in the wires and then sliding to the ground). After a set number of retries, it gives up and stays open; at that point, a human has to locate the fault, clear it (for instance, poking the fallen branch with a stick until it falls to the ground), and then tell the recloser to close the connection again.
Sounds like a recloser, which tries a number of times to restore power under the assumption that most faults are transient (for instance, a branch falling in the wires and then sliding to the ground). After a set number of retries, it gives up and stays open; at that point, a human has to locate the fault, clear it (for instance, poking the fallen branch with a stick until it falls to the ground), and then tell the recloser to close the connection again.