LOS ANGELES, July 9 (Xinhua) -- About 140,000 residents living in the northwest of Los Angeles were cut power service from Saturday evening to Sunday Morning, when the city was baked by a high temperature hit record.
The power outrage was initiated by an electrical incident at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) plant in Northridge, a outskirts city 40 kilometers northwest to LA downtown.
According to a LAPWD press release, the 230 Kilovolt equipment, which carries high voltage electricity and distributes it to customers in the surrounding area, caught fire and exploded around 6:53 pm Saturday.
About 100 Firefighters through night battled heavy flames and explosions, which can be seen from 10 kilometers away.
The fire was in an energized storage vault with more than 50,000 gallons of mineral oil, NBCLA reported, adding that firefighters had to let the flames burn while DWP workers de-energized the facility, then they put water and foam on the fire.
Los Angeles Fire Department Public Service Officer Brian Humphrey was quoted as saying that the cause of the fire was accidental and attributed it to a "mechanical malfunction".
Nobody was injured in the accident while more than 100 thousands residents suffered an unusual hot summer night until the power service was restored 9 am Sunday.
The power outage came as much of California baked in heat that broke records. A record that stood 131 years in Los Angeles was snapped when the temperature spiked at 98 Fahrenheit degrees (36.6 degrees centigrade) downtown on July 8.
Many residents sat at lawns, chatting with their neighbours, while more people scrolled through their cellphones under candles and post Videos to social media showing large plumes of smoke billowing into the air.
"I won't EVER take light or AC for granted again." an user "VeryPROUDAuntie" twitted at Saturday night.
