Blown transformer near jail believed to be cause of downtown Bellingham power outage
Electrical power to much of downtown Bellingham went out Wednesday evening and is believed to have been caused by a transformer failing near the Whatcom County Jail.
Bellingham Fire Department crews were called to the report of an electrical emergency at 4:09 p.m. Wednesday, March 9, at 311 Grand Avenue, according to the PulsePoint app.
The blown transformer caused a line between two poles to drop to the sidewalk near the south jail entrance, Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office Chief of Corrections Wendy Jones told The Bellingham Herald in an email Thursday morning.
One of the poles caught fire, Bellingham Fire Department spokesperson Dustin Michaelis told The Herald, but it self extinguished before firefighters arrived.
Michaelis reported that a sheriff’s deputy he spoke to heard a loud boom at the time the transformer is believed to have blown.
“The power outage was pretty widespread,” Michaelis said.
The jail switched to its emergency generators after power went out, Jones said, adding that the night shift at the jail reported full power was restored at approximately 9:55 p.m.
Approximately 592 customers were affected by the power outage, Puget Sound Engery spokesperson Jarrett Tomalin told The Herald in an email Thursday afternoon, but approximately 566 of them had power restored within in an hour. All remaining customers reportedly had power back by 12:30 a.m.
As a result of the power outage, Michaelis said firefighters were called to a couple of elevator rescues, but there was nothing of note.
PulsePoint noted the calls included:
▪ A fire alarm at 4:09 p.m. at the Civic Center Building on Commercial Street.
▪ An elevator rescue at 4:13 p.m. at the Honey Salon in the Granary Building.
▪ An elevator rescue at 4:34 p.m. at Bellingham Towers.
▪ A rescue at Whatcom County Jail at 6:06 p.m.
The Herald also has asked the Bellingham Police Department if there were any other incidents related to the power outage.
This story was originally published March 10, 2022 at 10:02 AM.
