Exciting Electrical Fire in front of our house / Tine Leictreach mhór os comhair ár dtí

Much excitement in our house yesterday during the storm. Shortly before 5pm the electric pole in front of our house took a direct hit with the most massive bolt of lightning/thunder I've ever seen or heard. A physical crash immediately ensued, and when I dared to look out the window, I noticed the industrial power line (which powers a nearby small factory) was down right in front of our house and three feet from our babysitters car! Not only that, but it was submerged in the drain and therefore shorting most spectacularly. Called 911 and all manner of emergency services came and closed off the street. Most worryingly for us, even they wouldn't come any closer than a block away, and when we ventured out onto the porch, they shouted at us to get back in the house and take cover!
The shorting, exploding, and rock-hurling (the explosions were throwing large bits of concrete all over the road) continued for several hours, as the storm, which was *huge*, continued. Presumably the electric company weren't going anywhere near their lines until the danger of being struck by lightning abated, so the cable continued to burn and spark until the storm abated.
The temperature was so high that the road surface was literally melting, and the heart of the fire looked like something from a volcano, with little drops of molten material being thrown out every few seconds.
Eventually the storm ceased, the electric company arrived, and the clean up began, but the road remained closed until about 1030pm. Even now there's a big gash in the road about five feet long, where the cable burned back like a fuse, melting and blowing up everything it touched.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• 101
• 2595