Update: Brunot Island Fire Extinguished, No Threat to Public

Duquesne Light Company officials continue to investigate cause

PITTSBURGH — An issue with a specialized transformer led to a fire on Pittsburgh’s Brunot Island, a 129-acre island on the Ohio River, on Monday evening.

Duquesne Light Company (DLC) and Pittsburgh fire crews quickly responded to the scene shortly after 8 p.m. The fire was extinguished overnight. As of Tuesday morning, the incident had not resulted in any injuries, threats to the public or disruption to electric service.

The fire was contained to the area surrounding the transformer. DLC is continuing to monitor the overall impact to equipment on the island, where we own a power substation, and we are partnering with a third-party contractor to conduct air monitoring around the vicinity of the damaged transformer.

A specialized transformer, also known as a shunt reactor, is a container of oil and coils of copper used to manage electric voltage. It is different than a power transformer, which is used to transform power between different voltages. DLC does not generate power and only operates transmission and distribution facilities.

Safety continues to be our top priority — for our customers, employees, the public and the environment. We are investigating the cause of the incident and working with the appropriate agencies to ensure the continued safety of our customers, employees and the environment.

We thank everyone involved for their hard and diligent work in getting this matter resolved safely.

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About Duquesne Light Company

For more than 100 years, Duquesne Light Company has provided safe and reliable electric service to communities in southwestern Pennsylvania. Today, our core values of safety, integrity, dependability, equity and community enable us to serve more than 600,000 customers in two counties, including the city of Pittsburgh. We are committed to safely powering our customers’ lives while playing a leading role in our region’s clean energy transition. Our vision is to create a larger-than-light, clean energy future for all by delivering exceptional results today and boldly harnessing opportunities for tomorrow. In doing so, we can ensure a cleaner, healthier and more equitable community for generations to come.

 

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Contact

411 Seventh Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15219

Media Line: 412-430-3404

www.duquesnelight.com