Substation fire leaves thousands without power in Penrith
June 2022Published 17 Oct 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
Get the next one by email
Free alerts on grid infrastructure incidents in the United Kingdom, and an email when EIR-2432 is updated. No account needed; unsubscribe in one click.
Get a free sample brief Three complete verified records and the incidents-per-GW table, by email within a minute.
By signing up you agree to the privacy policy.
Companies named in this entry: Electricity North West
What happened
On 16 June 2022, a fire at a substation caused a major power outage in Penrith, Cumbria. Electricity North West said more than 5,200 homes in Penrith were initially affected. By the time of reporting, around 1,000 homes in Penrith were still without power, and properties in Keswick were also affected. Engineers worked on site alongside Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service to repair the damage and restore supply. The source reports a current estimate that power would be restored by 7pm that day. It also says the company would give regular updates through its social media pages and website. The source does not say what caused the fire.
Contributing factors
Not reported. The source does not state the cause of the substation fire.
Lessons learned
- Operators should agree access, isolation and firefighting arrangements with the fire service in advance, so that repair and restoration can proceed safely alongside firefighting.
- Substation fires can affect supplies over a wide area, so operators should plan for customer communications and staged restoration from the outset.
- Regular public updates on restoration times, across social media and the operator's website, help customers and local responders plan during a prolonged outage.
More lessons on fire suppression and firefighting, outages, backup supply and restoration, from every incident on the register.
Source
Published 2026-10-17. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
