Substation fire in Miami Beach knocks out power to over 1,000 customers
EIR-1050A fire broke out at Florida Power and Light's Indian Creek Substation in Miami Beach at around 10:30pm on Saturday 20 March 2021. Miami Beach Fire Rescue crews responded to the blaze in the area of 54th Street and Collins Avenue. FPL shut off power along Collins Avenue so crews could use foam to extinguish the flames. The outage spanned from 50th to 70th streets, leaving several buildings without electricity. FPL initially expected to restore power overnight, but an equipment issue meant 1,044 customers remained without power as of the Sunday night. No one was hurt. FPL said it was working closely with local police and fire rescue officials to restore power as quickly as possible. The cause of the fire was not reported.
Not reported. The source states an equipment issue delayed full restoration of power beyond the initial overnight repair window, but gives no cause for the fire itself.
- Substation fires can require power shutoffs across wide areas of the distribution network to allow safe firefighting.
- Firefighting media suited to energised or oil-filled electrical equipment, such as foam, should be planned for in advance with the attending fire service.
- Equipment problems found after a fire can extend restoration well beyond first estimates, so restoration messaging should allow for secondary failures.
Published 2026-09-18. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.