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Grid infrastructureUnited StatesEIR-0831

Unauthorised access to El Paso substation causes explosion and outage

Oct 2017Published 15 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

SignificantElectrical
Estimated damageEstimated by the register's adjusterHow? Know the real figure?
Figure hidden: shown to subscribersLow confidence
supply cut for about •• daysShown in the record →Full estimate
From the recordRoot cause hiddenFailed part hidden
Where
El Paso Electric substation, northern corner of Montana and Trowbridge, El Paso, Texas
Operator
El Paso Electric
What
Unauthorised entry led to explosion and outage
Injuries
One person injured and taken to burn centre
Cause
Not reported

Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): El Paso Electric

What happened

An unauthorised individual entered an El Paso Electric substation at the northern corner of Montana and Trowbridge in El Paso, Texas, early in the morning. Police were called at around 6:40 a.m. to a report of a disturbance involving an intoxicated person. Before officers arrived, an explosion occurred inside the substation and the individual was thrown to the ground. He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital and later airlifted to a specialist burn centre for treatment.

The outage was reported at around 6:45 a.m. and affected about 2,100 customers, with power restored at around 8 a.m. El Paso Electric confirmed the person was not authorised to be in the substation. Police opened an investigation and were working to identify the man involved. The technical cause of the explosion was not reported.

Contributing factors

Unauthorised entry into a live electrical substation by an individual reported to be intoxicated. The specific equipment or mechanism involved in the explosion was not reported.

Lessons learned

  1. Live substations require strong fencing, locks and intrusion monitoring to stop unauthorised entry that can trigger faults.
  2. Rapid fault detection and isolation limits outage scale after an intrusion or internal fault.
  3. Pre-agreed plans with emergency services enable safe site access and fast medical response after electrical injury.

More lessons on theft, arson and site security, detection and monitoring, emergency response and public communication, from every incident on the register.

Not yet known

  • Technical cause of the explosion
  • Specific equipment or mechanism involved
  • Cost of the damage and repairs

This entry is updated when these are reported. Get an alert for the next one like it.

Source

ktsm.com

Published 2026-09-15. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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