Transformer explosion results in fire, power outage for thousands in Calgary

Fire crews were called to an explosion and fire inside a utility box in northeast Calgary on Tuesday morning.

The Calgary Fire Department was called to deal with a fire that began as a result of a transformer explosion in the northeast.

Officials told CTV News that crews were dispatched to an area near Country Hills Boulevard and Country Village Landing N.E. around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

They say a utility worker, who was driving by, noticed an electrical transformer had exploded and caught fire.

Crews found smoke and flames coming from a utility box and quickly extinguished it, but power for thousands of homes, as well as a nearby fire station, was affected.

The CFD says the station was able to switch to a back up generator, so operations there were unaffected.

CTV News has reached out to Enmax about the outage and an official said crews are working to restore power in the area.

"Power has been restored to the majority of affected customers. Our investigation into the cause is in progress," said Chinta Puxley, senior communications advisor with Enmax, in an email.

An outage map on Enmax's website did show power outages for as many as 5,000 customers at one point, but now indicates approximately 500 customers are affected by the incident.

According to those details, the issue is expected to be resolved by 5 p.m.

The company encourages anyone who may have been impacted by the outage to contact them by calling 403-514-3990.