‘Major’ Underground Electrical Fire Breaks Out Downtown

(Updated at 8:21 a.m.) Flames and thick smoke erupted from under the ground near several downtown office buildings after a “major” electrical fire broke out there late last night.

The fire started in a transformer vault near the intersection of 18th and L streets NW just before midnight, according to a tweet from D.C. Fire and EMS.

Fire crews used foam to extinguish the fire around 2:30 a.m. Nobody was injured in the blaze, said D.C. Fire and EMS.

Approximately 100 Pepco customers in the area lost power shortly after the fire began, according to the power company’s outage map. Several businesses and offices in the area were without power and closed.

Police have closed the 1800 block of L St. NW.

UPDATE/EAST BOUND TRAFFIC CLOSED 1800 L ST NW FROM AN ELECTRICAL FIRE/5269 pic.twitter.com/ZfU1Fm81ll

— DC Police Traffic (@DCPoliceTraffic) August 16, 2016

Major underground transformer fire 18th & L St NW threatening office building. Checking adjacent structures. pic.twitter.com/9mPSrbpWYF

— DC Fire and EMS (@dcfireems) August 16, 2016