Veld fires trip Prospect Substation causing Johannesburg power outage

Aug 2024Published 30 Sept 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

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Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): City Power

What happened

Veld fires under high-transmission lines in City Deep caused the Prospect Substation in Elandsfontein to trip on Tuesday night, as reported on 7 August 2024. The flames caused two 88 kV breakers on transformers 1 and 3 to trip. Several substations fed from Prospect lost supply, leaving multiple areas of Johannesburg without power. Restoration was partly complete by the time of the report, though Mulbarton, Mondeor and Robertsham were still without supply.

Contributing factors

City Power said fires under the lines in City Deep were the primary cause, and that the flames tripped the breakers. The operator has also warned that dense smoke under transmission lines can create conditions for a trip, and has cautioned residents against starting veld fires near servitudes. It is not reported whether smoke, rather than the flames, was the mechanism in this case.

Lessons learned

Keep activities that can ignite veld fires away from transmission servitudes.
Treat fire and smoke under high-voltage lines as a known trip risk in operating procedures and protection settings.
After a trip at a feeding substation, identify which downstream substations remain off and restore them in a stated order.

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

Source

News24 (news24.com)

Published 2026-09-30. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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