Electrical Arcing from Primary Line Causes Fire at WINGS Resale Shop that Destroys Building

[@PoppaBlue59]

I have been a firefighter for 27 years. Arcing lines, exploding transformers, tree limbs bumping lines, all of these things have caused skid marks in my drawers at one time or another. Men and women of the power company...you are my heros and my helmet is always off to you. God Bless and keep safe.

[@kjrivas7419]

Sad to see the business destroyed. The cause of the fire was the high voltage line falling and contacting the low voltage service line into the building and raising the potential of the service line to that of the overhead line. The arcing you see along the sides of the building are the service line, now energized to the overhead line's value. This arcing was also inside the store, along their power to the lights and displays. I saw this happen to an entire neighborhood block of houses when a tree-trimming operation dropped a phase of a 34kV line down onto the 240 volt lines feeding the houses. Again, the high voltage arcing went on for like almost an hour, burning the houses up pretty good. In this video, I was surprised to see the firemen shooting water into the building while the high voltage arcing at the rear of the building continued!

[@Kasejeb]

Wow, so if a greater voltage line falls even close by to a lesser voltage line, the lesser voltage line will jump up to match the voltage of the main line? So anything connected to the lower voltage line will completely fry to shit due to the change in volts? Also the two lines being close to each other will arc aswell right? So that's the temperature of plasma on top of everything else.

[@FloozieOne]

This is why you are always told to UNPLUG, not turn off, your computer and other delicate electronics during a thunderstorm. The lightening over-energizes the lower voltage and blam! your computer is now a melted lump. Some friends were watching TV when lightening hit their house. The TV exploded and blasted glass and metal all over the room, (this was in the old days before flat screens kids). The cat was sleeping on his lap and went straight up his face and over his head. He had some amazing claw marks and needed a few stitches.

[@NathanSamoa]

Hey KJ, For this case would the mains cable for the building going to the switchboard show evidence of arcing (after the fire)? Or would the pulse go through and the wire become energized and just heat up like a microwave?

[@chronically.advocating]

@@FloozieOne OMG I would've paid good money to see the cat incident! 🤣

[@mikekeller491]

I SAW 12K LINES DO THE SAME THING IN WEBB CITY MO. BLEW EVERY SOCKER OUT OF THE WALLS ON 3 HOMES. THESE WERE OLD HOMES WITH SLOW BLOW FUSES. NOTHING LEFT OF THE FUSE BOXES EITHER ! FD WAS BUSSY THAT DAY

[@taralynnmckeigan7730]

The arcing is a very intimidating sound.

[@a64738]

Why do the power stay on? My experience as a consumer of electricity here in Norway is that it triggers shut down immediately if a line is down and re energies once after a second or to, re-triggers shut down again and stays off. 2km from here (a little over a mile) one of the thee phases of a 20kv line went down and same happened, power went off instantly and after a second or too power came back but only on half power (one phase in my house that have only 2 phase power) and immediately after power was off again. This time it did not come on again before the power line was fixed many hours later.

[@gailgrove]

There always is a recloser (similar to a breaker) controlling the line, the issue here is the current likely wasn't high enough to trip it.

[@larryrwendelljr4465]

Wow! That was a powerful example and a deep respect to stay away from arcing power lines and transformers. Super video capture! :o)

[@godlover9096]

Why are there so many videos of issues with Arlington power lines? Does their power company even do proper maintenance on the lines?

[@CardinalNews]

ComEd was in high demand because of a storm that just passed through. If I remember correctly, ComEd also had a problem with power or communications at their command center because of the storm. I know there have been meetings between fire dept. administrators and ComEd. Hopefully they've worked on some sort of rapid response team from ComEd that could be requested by fire depts. via rapid access communications. Rapid cutoff is best kept as ComEd's responsibility. It's their grid & specialty.

[@klimas-kdawg3407]

I watch this video, always wondering if they would have thrown the main breaker before the fire started if it would have prevented the fire in the first place. It was the arching and most likely the power surges shorting out the electrical system. It was evident that the wires were suffering a major load due to the black marks all around the electrical conduit that ran around the building just below the roofline. This video definitely shows the destructive force that electricity has the potential of. It's an impressive video of a sad situation. I remember when this video first came out . The when it just happened years ago. Good video. I also found it interesting that at one point the water from the firefighters spray triggers the huge arching, the big blue flashes midway of this video. Pretty impressive to say tha least.

[@Arabhacks]

First, 2 fuses are clearly visible. Second, at a facility such as a nursing home somewhere nearby is a ground operated pole switch. This was an unfortunate incident but some fire departments have "hot stick" trained crews for just this reason. In Federal, the SWAT teams of some LE units are equipped for hot stick and elevator rescue.

[@steve45601yt]

At first I wondered why the firefighters were laying so far back...appearing to be doing nothing. Then toward the end of the video you can see why. The ENTIRE building is electrified. Very strange to see such a large building behave like that. Good training video.

[@PoppaBlue59]

Not only that Jay, but that building has a bowstring roof and they are prone to rapid collapse with no warning. See Hackensack NJ auto dealer fire, around 1988 or so. 5 firefighters killed.

[@ElectronNeutrino]

I have to say, I'm impressed that the firefighters thought to leave someone in a truck and let them use the truck mounted cannon to attempt to control the fire. I can't think of any significant risk as long as everyone else gets away from the truck. And Mysynthesis, they can close breakers at substations remotely. The problem, as I understand it, is that those breakers would drop a large area (possibly including hospitals) whereas the manual pole-mount disconnects can be more specific.

[@melevy]

@blackhawksrule01 - Maybe, but it's more likely it was wind. If it were lightning, it would have tripped a protection circuit and cut off the power.

[@ICANanimations]

I wonder if the stuff is still up for re-sale

[@builderdex]

+ICANanimations No. The police had to get involved, as the items were HOT.

[@ICANanimations]

Builder Dex so the Sale got Heated! xD

[@tjfreak]

Fantastic footage...I heard it was elec. ignition, to see & hear it is awesome..nice work capturing this..I can see in the furthest left window at 8:04 the shelving where the used audio/visual stuff was / is melting.. I was going to go there an hour or so just b4 this happened...I was passing by..figured I'll come back later..These fire fighters played it by the book.Closed off the area, evaluated & extinguished. No one hurt ! Wings is up & running by Rand & Dundee 6 months later.

[@gailgrove]

What would accessing the breaker box do? the issue is the 14,000 volt wires laying on top of the building, the breaker box wouldn't turn those off...

[@FloozieOne]

This is why you are always told to UNPLUG, not turn off, your computer and other delicate electronics during a thunderstorm. The lightening over-energizes the lower voltage and blam! your computer is now a melted lump. Some friends were watching TV when lightening hit their house. The TV exploded and blasted glass and metal all over the room, (this was in the old days before flat screens kids). The cat was sleeping on his lap and went straight up his face and over his head. He had some amazing claw marks and needed a few stitches.

[@s1krryo626]

surge protectors work wonders I always leave my power on even in thunder storms. so if lightning happens to ever strike. my electronics are safe with surge protectors

[@melevy]

The fire started on the inside due to electrical arcing. And how much foam do you think they have?

[@lgugue]

Wow... it seems there is no safety fuses in the primary line in this region... where I live, the 13.8kV line are protected by fuses, if something gone fail, such a car accident in a pole, a lightning or a cabe fall down, the line is cutted imediately, 30 minutes is enough for the linemen put everything ok, since there is nothing roasted to replace.

[@melevy]

Yes, I know lot of people lost power. But it wasn't -20F outside and those who didn't have medical conditions weren't in any danger. Pulling ONE crew off restoration duty for an hour to cut off power here would not have significantly impacted the restoration. Furthermore, the lines that fell and set this building on fire appear to be 12KV feeders, and power had to be out down the line, so they need to do some work here anyway. No, I do not live in Palatine.

[@n310ea]

I bet the power company faced a lawsuit, because when you have a short circuit, there supposed to be a fuse or breaker downstream to relay the power out.

[@demonsparkx]

you have some really nice footage and videos, as sad as it may be for what may be contained/happened in them. do you do this for freelance amateur footage or are you associated with a press/media? stay safe man

[@dotdankory]

Those are some mighty hot wings

[@skink356209]

By that, I mean it is safe to hose down a fire, from a city hydrant, unless it is in an area that has a higher magnesium/other metal content, as in the Auburn, AL area.

[@chrishulse5305]

I cannot believe how long it's taking to get the power shut off.

[@EphemeralProductions]

@floridaskater07 They have to. They are NOT allowed to do anything to put out the fire until the power is disconnected so that they do not endanger themselves.

[@n310ea]

Why were they spraying water when the power hadn't been turn off yet?

[@mer2705]

This looked more like a training exercise. They waited till the building was well involved before they pulled a line, they put Stevie Wonder on the master stream, they had the gatorade coolers sitting out, and no one seemed like they were in any kind of hurry

[@fireguye4]

what sucks is that you cant do anything until power company gets there. very frustrating

[@LMacNeill]

Man, that must be such a terrible feeling -- for both the firefighters and the building owner. Having well-trained firefighters on the scene who are forced to just sit around and watch the building burn -- exactly what they're trained to stop -- yet they can do nothing because the stupid power company is taking forever to get there and shut off the power. Crappy situation for everyone involved...

[@Truckguy1970]

Yeah unfortunately they were probably tied up somewhere else when this was happening,most areas only have 2 trucks unless they're preparing for a storm.

[@moultriemanicmechani]

if it was a normal fire they could have pulled the meter, but a primary wire fell on a secondary wire and they can't even approach the building due to high voltage

[@mike48632]

Didn't they think to call and have the power cut ?

[@melevy]

@blackhawksrule01 - this incident may be over, but it will happen again unless the problem with ComEd's responsiveness to emergencies is addressed. Like another poster said, what if this was some sort of residential building, like an assisted-living facility, where they couldn't just "let the building go?" What if ComEd needed to be there *right now*?

[@kerryward6896]

hell of a light show !

[@jays106]

wow you can see even hitting it with the cannons the wires along the outside of the building arc big time(about 8:53) as does the pole here we have breakers in the line that let go in this instance as when i was on dept here in winter we get lot of tree on wires calls makes one hell of a light show when the tree crosses the primary and secondary lines these guys smart let it burn. crew safety is #1

[@brety099]

If I were the owners of the Wings store I would have sued the power company. I Google mapped the the sight before the fire. The power company had a mess close to the building. Goggle map it once and go to street level and tell me that ain't a mess of high voltage wires close to a strucure. I just looked at the power at the corner of the building and there are no guide cables to support the the end pole. Any extra weight on the wires will cause the pole at the corner to fail. Which it did.

[@classic287]

I don't understand why there is no automatic load cutoff with something arcing that much.

[@Okanagan48]

I dont understand why a breaker didnt pop somewhere down hydro line.

[@williammoses6232]

i see at least five fire company personel there,,, and now for the musical magical question did anyone think to call the power company so they could send a crew out and shut off the the power on that wire to the fire company could put out the fire?

[@nightwing36s]

@floridaskater07 I sure wouldn't want to try and spray water anywhere near a live wire

[@littleblitz8239]

What is "normal water"?

[@firelensman]

Wow. That was a little hard to watch...

[@RODALCO2007]

Great video.

[@1966v8mustang]

i would think they would put some kind of breaker/fuse on like every 5th pole so they can kill the power if needed

[@FEDERALSIGNALTECH]

I had same trouble with my power co. when a tree fell and hit my pole due to a bad storm we had 2 months ago.

[@freeamericausa1]

There are still people among us who haven't figured out how to set the time on their wristwatch. Monday morning quarterbacks are still...A DIME A DOZEN. If you weren't there. Sometimes it's wise, and smarter to just...say nothing.

[@richardsimpson3136]

NOTHING!!! ...LOL...

[@WiredrawnMurder45]

@dcave74 Not that simple. The ground roughly 250ft around the downed wire is still charged and would have carried the electricity well into the building.

[@rfi-cryptolab4251]

Bullshito

[@johnnyq1233]

That's crazy! You late for your electrical payment, they cut you off instant!!!! There's a fire situation where electrical is arcing and .......still waiting........still waiting.....

[@gerrato48]

Don't know why the circuit breaker did not trip out !...They must have had it set way to high !

[@lanceedgin4393]

there are no circut breakers. its the primary line from up above. the only way to shut it off is to wait for the city.

[@mrgerrato7180]

+gerrato48 Really Lance !..Well where I come from all high voltage feeders are protected by circuit breakers for just that sort of situation! ( NB I have been a Linesman for 42 years)

[@lanceedgin4393]

Well, I'm a trained FireFighter. The only circut breaker that there COULD be is too high to get to safely with the main line down.

[@gerrato48]

+peter gerraty The breakers are in the sub station building at the start of the feeder !

[@gerrato48]

I think I won !...lol

[@melevy]

@blackhawksrule01 - I realize that. They could have released just ONE crew to come and shut off the power here before the entire building was lost.

[@melevy]

@thespacepope88 - It just pisses me off that the building and contents were lost due to the total incompetence and inaction of ComEd. It was clear that if they had bothered to show up in a timely manner, the firefighters were ready to put out whatever little fire there was and saved everything. I wish I were a lawyer. I see a big lawsuit here.

[@brety099]

If I were the owners of the Wings store I would have sued the power company. I Google mapped the the sight before the fire. The power company had a mess close to the building. Goggle map it once and go to street level and tell me that ain't a mess of high voltage wires close to a strucure.

[@Eddiecurrent2000]

I think the US needs to rethink it's policy of having HV lines criss crossing urban areas like this. Why it insists on having pole mount transformers so close to the user is mystery to anyone with sense it's a recipe for disaster. It also means fire fighting is dam near impossible.

[@jwblantCU]

These aren't HV lines. IEEE defines HV as above 69kV. This is just a simple distribution line, probably 15kV or less. The only alternative to distribution lines would be either to insulate them (EXPENSIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not practical by ANY means!) or to distribute 120V to each house individually. If you distribute at 120V, your losses will be astronomical and voltage drop would be 25% or higher in most urban areas, even if using 750MCM. Remember V=IR, so if your voltage goes down, current goes up. You calculate your loses by I^2*R, so if your voltage is cut in half, your current doubles, but your losses quadruple. The PMT (pole mounted transformer) is essential because it allows to carry power must further and minimize losses in the lines due to the higher current of lower voltages because the voltage is stepped down locally where the power is actually being used.

[@Eddiecurrent2000]

The IEC describes HV as any voltage greater than 1kV, so by international standards these are most definitely HV. In the UK we only use a pole mount in rural areas. The majority of TXs are ground mounted (11kV -415v 3p) and then distributed out from there at 240V(1p) either over head or underground, we still get problems where the electricty companies are called to isolate supplies, but we don't have many overhead supplies in urban areas anymore. We certainly wouldn't have 11kV lines as close to structures as the US does. The losses aren't excessive. It can be done, and it isn't prohibitively expensive and it's certainly safer. There is the possibilty of an excavator digging one up (big yellow cable detector as we call them), but when they're buried they are less susceptible to damage from vehicles, weather, and vegetation. If the US didn't use 110V, I'm guessing you wouldn't need so many pole mounts, but changing the US to 240V would be impossible!

[@jwblantCU]

Eddiecurrent2000 If a excavator gets within a mile of a buried cable, you can almost guarantee it's going to find it... But I'm used to industrial facilities in the US and 11kV is on the low end of the MV to me, but it's all relative. In the US, we used pole mounted because we use overhead lines. If it was buried, we would use pad mounted. But we have been doing overhead since the beginning and so in most cities, it's unfeasible to go back and bury them due to cost and tearing up all the roads, sidewalks, and foundations. Not to mention it would take half a century to get all the lines underground. So while underground is "better", overhead is arguably cheaper to install and you are allowed to use a free-air rating for the cables instead of derating for use with direct bury.

[@Eddiecurrent2000]

We Have a lot of debate in the UK about undergrounding transmission cables, but the public don't appreciate just how much cost is involved. They also don't realise how long an undergound (HV) fault can take to fix. In many respects overheading is actually better for everyone. I guess being in the business we can see both sides, but the public only see that they are unsightly, the majority of my work involves overhead lines and they are so much easier to deal with compared to cables. A single fault on a cable can take weeks to fix, whereas a fault in an overhead line is usually a transient fault and is cleared quickly! I still shudder at the thought of 15kV being so close to buildings though!

[@TheChipmunk2008]

Eddiecurrent2000 Part of the reason the US system has local (smallish) transformers is because of the lower voltage (yes I know they have 240 to the houses) but the UK has 240/415, not 120/240... that would cause quite a lot of loss if they tried a layout like we have with a substation for each neighbourhood I agree the overhead is messy, but as Will Blanton says, it'd be a HUGE massive undertaking to underground it all. Most new developments tend to be underground. I do agree the idea of anything over 415 v near dwellings scares the bejesus out of me

[@skink356209]

Normal water is actually non conductive, but contaminated water w/ metal in it is.

[@davidh807]

I know that this is a very late comment, but here it is, anyway. I guess that what you mean by "normal water" is pure (distilled) water. You're correct in saying that it will not conduct electricity. It's the mineral content in water that causes conduction.

[@PeculiarLancer]

Of course the water didn't work! The electricity need to be shut off before handling the flames.

[@edgaralejandrosandovalrang1314]

en Mexico la mayoria de los incedios se ocacionan por cables defectuosos y radica en los dueños de los locales que por unos pesos se que man miles.

[@EphemeralProductions]

God bless those firemen though that they risked the electricity getting them, to try to fight down that fire and help the owners of the building have less damage and less to deal with.

[@dcave74]

@TheAluminiumklorid Ok, Yes the power must be cut before they attack THE BACK CORNER of the building where the arcing wires are... there is no reason they could not station a couple firemen inside with a hose and stop any fire in the building.... the water cannot touch where the electrical wires that are arcing are which is at the back corner of the building on the outside.... I believe the firemen are to blame for this destroying the building....

[@littleblitz8239]

That makes sense, see, you can teach an old person new things. Little Blitz 85 LZFD Retired Illinois

[@PoppaBlue59]

I have been with the fire department a long time now. It is frustrating to have to stand and watch something like this. Until the power is off there's not a helluva lot you can do.

[@Truckguy1970]

And the power company probably doesn't have enough help like most places around here.

[@RobNike76]

Wow, that building had no chance in hell from the git go!

[@rethla]

In europe we have this great invention called the shovel. Amongst other things we use it put our power lines safely under ground.

[@JeffDeWitt]

rethla So ALL your power lines are underground? I find that hard to believe.

[@rethla]

In cities they are

[@JeffDeWitt]

rethla In most cities here they are too... I live out in the boonies and my power lines are underground.

[@JeffDeWitt]

***** Just curious, do you work for a power company? Or are you a power line geek? (Nothing at all wrong with that!)

[@JeffDeWitt]

***** That certainly explains why you notice power lines! The place where I work handles end of lease computing equipment but we get a lot of other related stuff. A big power company sends us lots of stuff and time we got some cameras from them. I was curious (OK nosy) and checked to see if there were any images left on one of them.... sure enough, pictures of power lines and transformers!

[@fishodorvagina]

Those firefighters are awesome, spraying water on the building while it is still energized.

[@EphemeralProductions]

It's really unfair and stinky too, considering what Wings Resale is and what they stand for.

[@marcblack1]

Grab a few bags of dry sand and toss it all onto the live wires, at best you get a freaking awesome eclectically decorated sculpture

[@davidhaney1394]

man , America needs to sort out there power delivery system . sheesh .

[@ashley9732]

The reason they can't put the fire out is because if they use water the water will run down hill and spread out the water everywhere and then the water becomes live as soon as you touch the water your body acts as the earth and your dead in this case they would have needed to use carbon dioxide to put it out

[@joe125ful]

Somewhere must be main switch on pole....

[@forde350]

OMG THIS IS THE MOST DISASTEROUS FOOTAGE ON THE NET.

[@jamesdodd1823]

Where the fuck is the utilities company to shut down the hydro and gas?

[@nattters1]

holy crap i have never seen anything like this

[@s07StickEmpires]

+nattters1 I know neither did I O_O

[@EphemeralProductions]

Hope these guys had good insurance. LOL I would make sure that burning by electricity was covered in my insurance if I got a business. LOL

[@19GN03]

Put powerlines in the ground, here in the Netherlands al powerlines are in the ground, much safer. Only the HT lines 150380 Kv are on masts en outside city's wher they cant do anny harm.

[@loupole5654]

I believe I would be suing to the tune of 27.35 Million dollars. . .

[@Samanthareneeheart1]

Yeah until the power company gets there (here they get in no big hurry they get there when they get there) not much they CAN do but let it burn & the light show that was put on by the line hitting the building's gutters.... WOW. Let it burn till the power is off.

[@ydnarslohcin1592]

WTF??? They shoulda made an interior attack on that fire. Geez, what a waste. They sat around with a thumb up their asses. Dammit man.

[@guidosarducci166]

You didn't notice the arcing line down behind the building?

[@melevy]

@thespacepope88 - Put it this way, for as much admiration as I have for firefighters, I have an equal level of contempt for ComEd.

[@yamahonkawazuki]

nope only thjing that would do is stop the power from entering the building past the breaker panel. not between pole and panel lol

[@Laikmuay]

@smurfboywv Lol I don't think its smart to hose down an electrical fire. They were probably waiting for the power to be shutoff before they could do anything.

[@jchambers2586]

7,200 volts

[@s07StickEmpires]

+John Chambers WOW that's alot! But why would they wait for the fire to get so out of control before doing anything?

[@jchambers2586]

+s07 SE Battles because you can't put water on an energized line got to wait for the power company to pull the fuse at the pole

[@s07StickEmpires]

John Chambers ohh......and it took too long.......I plan to be a lineman electrician but wow that's crazy!

[@jchambers2586]

+s07 SE Battles all depends on how far the electric companies shop is from where they need to go. it takes me 30 minutes to get from their shop to my house

[@s07StickEmpires]

John Chambers ohhh amazing how electricity is........shame the building got destroyed.

[@steffen5121]

*sarcasm on* Water is shooting into the windows in an perfect angle. 10/10 firemen work. *sarcasm off*

[@treylarson7487]

They should have called the electric n had the electric shut off

[@lanceedgin4393]

They probably did. But it can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours for them to send a crew out to shut off the power.

[@460faust]

lol but dont shut the power off......just throw water on it....

[@empireoflizards]

You'd think someone could get a long fiberglass fuse puller and yank those babies out (shown at 4:00)...or get a .22 and shoot them out, lol. Ok maybe not shoot them out.

[@TheChipmunk2008]

Shooting them out would have been preferable to watching a business burn down. I often wonder if a net gun with a copper mesh net fired into the 3phase feeder (by someone wearing a welding mask!) might be an idea to shut the power down FAST in this kind of event

[@EphemeralProductions]

@hmcgill911 That was what I was saying! That's why I said "risked the electricity getting to them"!! Hellloooo?? :\

[@matthewkeene524]

The Arc of the Covenant. Kek!

[@loupole5654]

classic . . very good!

[@melevy]

Once again, the amazing incredible fantastic response of the power company saves the day. Bastards. Wings should sue.

[@DrumCoversbyBill]

Lotta firefighters standing around twiddling their thumbs.

[@glennhuber4975]

Drum Covers by Bill so you want them to get electrocuted? Ass

[@howardflugmacher4536]

Bbn

[@Zanewv]

Some people can't figure out a phone.

[@icysteve69]

like other fire departments its called call dispatch and get the power shut off and there wouldn't have been so much dwlay on the fire

[@BOB12349307]

why did they not put dry chemical on this fire? once again they just sit there!! i guess they need the training

[@zelldjgmoneeharris624]

Nothing the fire department can do until electrical utility company gets on site. Put what they want on fire, but will not stop the danger until down line is de- energized by electrical company,

[@BOB12349307]

dry chem can be put on live electrical fires with no danger

[@BOB12349307]

pretty sure they know

[@guidosarducci166]

The problem wasn't the fire outside sparked by the line. The line was in contact with the building proper and was arcing through the wires in the building, thus what set the building on fire. Also, dry chemical is not always available and in the case of this fire would have not prevented the building from being destroyed.

[@BOB12349307]

i just wonder how much taxpayers were paying all the firefighters to stand there and watch it burn down!!

[@brety099]

If I were the owners of the Wings store I would have sued the power company. I Google mapped the the sight before the fire. The power company had a mess close to the building. Goggle map it once and go to street level and tell me that ain't a mess of high voltage wires close to a strucure. I just looked at the power at the corner of the building and there are no guide cables to support the the end pole. Any extra weight on the wires will cause the pole at the corner to fail. Which it did.