BC Hydro power station goes into flames due to transformer old age
Canada, British Columbia: Huge flames and thick black smoke towered into the air in Richmond on Tuesday morning after a BC Hydro power station caught fire probably due to transformer failure.
Canada, British Columbia: Huge flames and thick black smoke towered into the air in Richmond on Tuesday morning after a BC Hydro power station caught fire probably due to transformer failure.
BC Hydro VP of field operations David Lebeter believes old age of the transformer may have been the cause of the blaze – the transformer that caught on fire was 44 years old, and contained 65,000 litres of fuel.
“Given the age of the transformer it’s probably the end of life, and I would suspect the insulation broke down inside the transformer,” he said. “But that’s what the investigation will have to determine.”
Fire crews had to wait for 3.5 hours to fight the flames when power to the substation was shut off and the area was made safe by BC Hydro crews.
Source: CTV News
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