Edinburgh substation fire leads to power cuts
Sept 2024Published 29 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
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What happened
On 23 September 2024 at about 5.15pm, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service found an electrical substation on fire on West Granton Road in Edinburgh. Smoke was visible for miles and fire crews attended. No injuries were reported. Homes near Waterfront Avenue lost power, and some were without electricity for nearly 12 hours.
Contributing factors
Police Scotland later said two people had been charged in connection with the fire, and that a report would go to the relevant authority. The published report does not say how the fire started.
Lessons learned
- Substation sites need controls that deter unauthorised access.
- Operators should plan for a lengthy local outage after a substation fire, as some nearby homes were without power for nearly 12 hours.
- Public statements should keep what is known separate from what remains under investigation.
More lessons on outages, backup supply and restoration, emergency response and public communication, from every incident on the register.
Published 2026-09-29. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
