On January 21st, 2020 at 9:35 amThe Norwalk Fire Department responded to an explosion and fire in a sidewalk electrical vault. The vault located in front of 44 North Main Street had its door blown open with flames and heavy black smoke showing, when Firefighters arrived. Firefighters initially stood by with a hose line and checked the buildings near the vault for any smoke or fire extension, as South Norwalk Electric Works (SNEW) secured power at a substation. When it was confirmed the power was off, the fire was quickly extinguished. There no damage to the surrounding buildings, although some shops and offices shut down due to no electricity.

A woman who worked in the area, was discarding some trash in the container alongside the vault, when the explosion happened and fortunately was uninjured in the blast.  

SNEW officials responded quickly to the scene to secure power and once the fire was out began work on restoring power to the area. The buildings in the immediate area that are  supplied by the transformer and equipment in the vault, will be out for at least the day.