ComEd electrical vault fire prompts hazmat response in Chicago's West Loop
CHICAGO (CBS) — A ComEd electrical vault caught fire in Chicago's West Loop on Wednesday morning, causing dozens of customers to lose power for several hours.
Heavy smoke and flames billowing from the electrical source at 113 North Green Street prompted a Level 2 hazmat response by the Chicago Fire Department. A nearby hotel, the Soho House, was evacuated.
Hotel guest Michael Worrall told CBS News Chicago he was alerted of the evacuations over a loud speaker. He said he saw dark smoke.
"From our angle, we could not see if the smoke was coming from the building or from the sidewalk," Worrall said.
Officials said in an early afternoon news conference that a cause for the fire had yet to be determined. Firefighters still had to move equipment underground to determine the cause.
Scott Kadish, who was staying at the hotel, said he heard yelling from his room around 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday. He evacuated and was standing outside in his shorts and a t-shirt. The lawyer from Cincinnati was in Chicago for a meeting.
"I decided I might as well just trudge down to the office in my gym shorts into my law firm to a meeting, with my gym shorts and workout clothes and had to try to explain, luckily they had a toothbrush at my office," Kadish said. "So I could at least brush my teeth."
The fire left at least two businesses and two residential buildings without power. Power was knocked out for 25 to 39 customers, but was restored by around 3 p.m. using a generator.
"We have transformers that are underground that help support the customers here in the West Loop," said Nichole Owens, ComEd's vice president of distribution operations. "That transformer has had some challenges and last night, it appeared that it had failed. This morning, it sent signals such as smoking within the manhole, potential fires."
CBS News Chicago's Kris Habermehl said the Chicago Fire Department could not fight the fire until ComEd crews cut the power source. The utility company was assessing the damage to the transformer and the cables underground to make permanent repairs.