Fire reported at NGCP Hermosa substation in Bataan

What happened

The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) said a fire broke out at its substation in Barangay Balsik, Hermosa, Bataan, at 4:40 p.m. on 3 August 2024. Initial reports indicated that a DICT contractor struck a 69 kV line owned and operated by Peninsula Electric Cooperative (Penelco) outside the facility, and that the cut conductor landed on a non-technical structure inside the substation and started the fire. The fire affected NGCP's Hermosa-Calaguiman 69 kV line, which serves three generation plants in Bataan.

NGCP said transmission services to distribution customers were not interrupted. Police reported that the fire, at a warehouse of the substation, was declared out at 6:51 p.m. and that three construction workers were injured. Separately, Penelco said an unscheduled interruption in Dinalupihan and the Hermosa Ecozone followed accidental contact by a truck with the Hermosa-Dinalupihan line in Balsik, and that a fire in the same area affected a segment of that line.

Contributing factors

NGCP's initial account attributed the substation fire to external contact that cut a 69 kV conductor, which then fell onto a structure inside the site. Penelco separately reported accidental truck contact with a distribution line in the same area. The link between the two accounts has not been confirmed.

Lessons learned

1. Work beside live overhead lines needs enforced clearance controls for vehicles and contractors.
2. A conductor cut outside a substation boundary can still start a fire inside the site if it falls onto structures.
3. Transmission and distribution operators should share timely information when an external contact and a fire affect lines in the same area.

More lessons on worker safety and safe systems of work, from every incident on the register.

Source

punto.com.ph