A transformer failure at a Southern California Edison substation in the Norwalk/Downey area led to a widespread power outage in the area Tuesday, but a spokesman for the utility said most customers had their power quickly restored.
The outage occurred sometime after 2 p.m., although the cause was not immediately known. SCE spokesman Jeff Monford told City News Service it was unclear how quickly electrical service would be fully restored.
“We understand having a power outage on a holiday is a hardship,” Monford said. “We continue to work to restore power to customers safely and as quickly as possible. This outage is a major priority for us.”
Crews were able to re-route power to get most impacted customers back online relatively quickly.
As of 7:30 p.m., SCE’s online outage map indicated that as many as 24,000 customers were affected by the outage.
Metro C (Green) Line trains were halted between the Norwalk and Willowbrook/Rosa Parks stations when the power issue began. Buses were brought in to shuttle passengers between the stations, but electrical service on the light rail line was restored and trains began running again just before 5 p.m., according to the transit agency.
There were also reports of traffic lights being out at multiple intersections. It was unclear exactly how far the outage spread, but there were reports of electricity being out in areas including Santa Fe Springs, Bellflower and South Gate.