Fire at Rosslyn substation disrupts power in Tshwane

What happened

A fire broke out at the Rosslyn substation in Tshwane, South Africa, on Monday 16 August 2021. The fire was extinguished the same day, and officials were then able to assess the damage. The city reported that the substation's firewalls had contained the fire to a very small area. Electricity supply was cut to several areas, including the Orchards, Amandasig, Karenpark and Gomsand, parts of Soshanguve and the Rosslyn industrial area.

The affected part of the substation supplies small manufacturing companies that supply larger companies, including BMW, and their production was disrupted. Repair work was under way the same day, and the city said it would update residents on progress from the Monday evening.

Contributing factors

The source does not state the cause of the fire. It credits the substation's firewalls with containing the fire to a small area.

Lessons learned

1. Fire barriers such as firewalls can confine a substation fire to a small area and limit the spread of damage.
2. Operators should map which downstream manufacturers depend on a single substation feed, because one fault can halt supply chains well beyond the local network.
3. Utilities should publish outage areas and repair progress to residents and customers promptly during an incident.

More lessons on spacing, layout and fire spread, outages, backup supply and restoration, from every incident on the register.

Source

jacarandafm.com