Cable fire under London Street

[bernardgreen]

Holborn electrical fire causes mass evacuation

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-32150554

 

[Aragorn84]

Seen a few news stories from london semi-recently in a similar vein.

What exactly is causing it? Is it just ancient cables deteriorating?

 

[JohnD]

Kingsway has a disused tram tunnel, and there are some very large underground cold war bunkers and communication tunnels nearby.

 

[bernardgreen]

The tram tunnel has been used for various purposes over the years since the trams stopped running. For a while the flood control centre for London Resilience was there in a couple of Port-a-Cabins.

http://www.subbrit.org.uk/sb-sites/sites/k/kingsway_tram_subway/index4.shtml

 

[ban-all-sheds]

http://underground-history.co.uk/kwupass.php

Not sure the fire was in the old underpass though...

Nor was it here, but it might have been in a duct associated with it.

http://www.subbrit.org.uk/rsg/sites/k/kingsway/

http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/nov/11/-sp-underground-london-secret-city-ghost-tube-stations

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingsway_telephone_exchange

More interesting than a disused tramway in any event...

 

[bernardgreen]

More interesting than a disused tramway in any event...

That dis-used tramway tunnel has had a very interesting history but some is shrouded in secrecy.

 

[333rocky333]

Theres at least 3 large generators running by the strand and loads of traffic lights out a far as the embankment,

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I used to work very near there.

 

[333rocky333]

You proberly know the devareux pub then
The generators tapped into the sub in Essex st and theres two more running in surrey st

 

[eveares]

So what was the exact cause?

Something collapsed underground and shorted a cable?

 

[plugwash]

I doubt we will know the exact cause for some time if ever, fires can be pretty good at destroying the evidence of what started them.

 

[Simon35]

My productivity at work has now plummeted, 'cos I'm trawling through that http://www.subbrit.org.uk/ website.

Great link, I love stuff like that.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

You proberly know the devareux pub then

Yup.

And the Edgar Wallace, the Cheshire Cheese...

 

[Screech20]

Someone said something about gas causing the cables to fault. When I get 5mins I'll get the emails up and read them properly!

 

[JohnD]

I think it was the other way round.

The flaring cables damaged the gas pipes.