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Grid infrastructureKuwaitEIR-2558

Substation transformer fire causes power cut in Hawally, Kuwait

Apr 2020Published 25 Oct 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

SignificantThermal / fire
Estimated damageEstimated by the register's adjusterHow? Know the real figure?
Figure hidden: shown to subscribersMedium confidence
supply cut for about •• daysShown in the record →Full estimate
From the recordRoot cause hiddenFailed part hidden

Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): Ministry of Electricity and Water

What happened

A fire broke out in the feeder cell of transformer No. 1 at a main electricity substation in the Hawally region, known as Hawally B, on 8 April 2020. The fire caused a power outage across the block the substation supplies. The Ministry of Electricity and Water said its fire brigades and emergency teams attended immediately, extinguished the fire and isolated the damaged transformer. Power was restored to the station at 7.10 pm the same day.

The ministry said the fire caused no harm to human life but resulted in limited material losses. The station was being examined to establish the cause of the fire. Senior ministry staff attended the site to follow the work.

Contributing factors

Not yet reported. The ministry said the station was being examined to find out the reasons for the fire.

Lessons learned

  1. Fault isolation on transformer feeder cells should allow a damaged unit to be taken out of service quickly so that supply can be restored to the rest of the network.
  2. Rapid mobilisation of fire and emergency teams helps contain a substation fire and can shorten the time before supply is restored.
  3. Operators should investigate substation fires promptly and publish the root cause so that other sites can check similar equipment.

More lessons on electrical protection and isolation, outages, backup supply and restoration, investigation and fleet-wide checks, from every incident on the register.

Source

arabtimesonline.com

Published 2026-10-25. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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Chart to reuse with this story: Grid infrastructure incidents by year, free with a credit (PNG).

Grid infrastructure incidents in Kuwait: 4 entries, with a free alert for the next one.

Substation and transformer fires: the counts, the latest entries and a free alert for the next one.

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