Transformer house fire cuts power to about 259 homes in Stadskanaal
Apr 2026Published 13 Nov 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor
Get the next one by email
Free alerts on grid infrastructure incidents in the Netherlands, and an email when EIR-2880 is updated. No account needed; unsubscribe in one click.
Confirm your email and every substation and transformer incident on the register arrives at once as a spreadsheet (CSV), free.
Get a free sample brief Three complete verified records and the incidents-per-GW table, by email within a minute.
We will also email you about the register's paid records and plans, at most once a week and three times in all. You can stop these at any time. By signing up you agree to the privacy policy.
Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): Enexis
What happened
A fire broke out in a transformer house on the Roekenhof in Stadskanaal, Netherlands, on 23 April 2026. The fire brigade was called at about 13:50 after a passer-by heard a bang and called emergency services. Before firefighters could act, the grid operator Enexis cut the power supply, leaving about 259 households without electricity. Residents living directly next to the unit had to leave their homes as a precaution, and the area was cordoned off with tape.
The fire was extinguished a little after 15:00. Several homes on the Roekenhof and the Wielewaalhof in the Vogelwijk district were left without power. Enexis placed an emergency generator, and the source reports that all homes were then reconnected. The time of restoration is not reported.
Contributing factors
The source does not state the cause of the fire or of the bang heard before it.
Lessons learned
- Grid operators should have clear procedures to isolate a failing transformer quickly, so that a fire can be contained before the fire service arrives.
- Where a substation fire is likely to affect nearby homes, a precautionary evacuation plan and cordon should be agreed in advance with the fire service.
- Temporary generation should be ready to restore supply to customers who lose power during an incident, so that the outage is kept as short as possible.
More lessons on worker safety and safe systems of work, fire suppression and firefighting, outages, backup supply and restoration, from every incident on the register.
Source
Published 2026-11-13. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.
