Awesome Electrical Fire Footage from Russia - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: dexters_lab
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 09:41:52 am
content: i believe this is from Chelyabinsk, Russia.Anyone have any idea what might have caused this?Looks like they were going through checking things and then they throw a switch... boom!nothing much happens until 8:50

author: MK14
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 10:00:10 am
content: Thanks, I like that video!Using google translate, I managed to learn a little bit more.They are making a joke (but being truthful). Saying that the official information is saying/going-to-say that it was planned and went according to plans, and is 100% fine! (something like that, anyway).The safety? systems, should have shut it down, they DIDN'T (or not quickly enough), for some reason.They are describing possible faults, which could have caused it, such as the load not being connected and other stuff.

author: CJay
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 10:10:14 am
content: Quote from: dexters_lab on April 14, 2016, 09:41:52 amThrowing snow on an electrical fire?Doesn't seem the most sensible way to cool it all down...

author: Ice-Tea
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 11:44:29 am
content: Guessing the bloke with the visor was quite happy he put it down before tossing the switch...

author: AF6LJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 12:04:11 pm
content: In a word...Oh SHIT!..

author: KSP
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 12:20:36 pm
content: That certainly was an awesome electrical fire!Lucky neither of them got hurt really

author: Dora
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 12:28:30 pm
content: Quote from: CJay on April 14, 2016, 10:10:14 amPower was already switched off.Snow is free and plenty and the extinguisher is small and probably would not be enough to put fire out in several different spots anyway

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 12:42:01 pm
content: Glad it wasn't another of those horrendous arc flash videos!I assume those were contactors in those mesh door cabinets at the top - lined up with the vents in the front doors.Lucky there was plenty of snow around, it took ages for the guy with the little extinguisher to turn up. At least they didn't need to waste it!

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 12:58:44 pm
content: As I understand, they were supposed to switch the transformers so some repair work could be done on one.Seems that he turned off the wrong switch at 8:15, and when he turned the next switch - BOOM.Also is said that in some official document mentioned: because the switch was frozen, some ceramic insulator broke during the switching. Protection failed to shut down the system because of the relay with a factory defect.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 01:00:50 pm
content: The man who is filming complains that the old man shouldn't do this, and if his computer or fridge burns down, what he is going to do? The old man says that he f..cked his fridge, and continues doing his stuff...Just before the shit happens, he asks to smile into the camera

author: AlxDroidDev
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 01:31:29 pm
content: This is how to react in a situation like this:1) Extinguish fire2) Change your pants and underwear before anyone notices

author: botcrusher
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 01:32:44 pm
content: Man electricity is scary $%&# sometimes. How much power was going through that box?

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 06:28:23 pm
content: Quote from: botcrusher on April 14, 2016, 01:32:44 pmProbably 33kV, looks like either a small distribution yard or a factory tap off the local grid. Current would be 1kA maximum on those cables, though likely it was closer to 3kA during this fault, at least until the supply side overcurrent trip finally noticed the off scale high for long enough. They either closed a link line into an earthed state ( you do this so a line can safely be worked on, due to the possibility of induced voltage from other close wires or an accidental switching of power into it) or shorted the incoming feeder instead of the outgoing feeder from a switch after doing the changeover to the alternate transformer to ensure an uninterrupted supply.The going by the books, and the checking off says they followed a good training regime, though the phone ringing after a few seconds says the load suddenly had a failure as the upstream supply tripped out. Going to take a while to fix that, you have to cut out the links to the failed side totally, enable the redundant side and turn the upstream back on, then strip out those cabinets and replace with the spare units in stores. Might take a week, as you have to truck the new stuff in from another site or grab parts from assorted depots.

author: Blaffetuur
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 07:20:36 pm
content: I'm surprised that it lasted so long

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 07:35:17 pm
content: Quote from: Blaffetuur on April 14, 2016, 07:20:36 pmHigh voltage power lines tend to respond slowly to overcurrent, as the overload capacity is pretty high for a short period, the lines just sag down lower. Flashover tends to be self clearing, whatever ( big bird, ice buildup on an insulator, idiot trying to steal line) is causing the current spike tends to be blown apart in the flashover, so only a long period overload will pull the dashpots up out of the oil bath to close the main tripping contacts. Too fast a trip time and you have blackouts, a minor overload ( in a grid scheme this was probably barely noticed on a meter other than at the supply point) will simly result in a slight frequency shift, not a voltage drop overall.

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 09:38:47 pm
content: Ooooooh pretty! That would have been awesome to experience.I think that guy who flipped the switch might be related to photonicinductionI'm gonna pop it!

author: dexters_lab
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 14, 2016, 11:46:32 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on April 14, 2016, 06:28:23 pmyea, i did smile when his mobile rang, would like a good translation of that!

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 15, 2016, 12:53:00 am
content: Quote from: CJay on April 14, 2016, 10:10:14 amWhy not? Better than trying to cup water in your hands. Obviously a CO2 or Dry Chemical extinguisher wasn't close by and the cabinet itself didn't appear to have any fire suppression system. Electrical fires can be quite safely extinguished with water provided you stand far enough back and break the stream at regular intervals so the water jet doesn't act as a conductor back to the hose and into your hand.In any case, I bet you that guy stands back and cringes every time he has to throw a big switch from now on. I know I would.

author: DrGeoff
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2016, 04:38:08 am
content: I suspect he switched two non-synchronised generators onto the same bus.The equipment looks really old and crusty, no interlocks or warnings and no pole interruptors, which could have been tripped to kill the arc.He had to run through a signed-off sequence of operations to perform the task, and appears to have forgotten that switch that he changed after the fire

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 15, 2016, 09:39:03 am
content: Quote from: dexters_lab on April 14, 2016, 11:46:32 pmHe first made a call to say about the fuck-up and said there is a fire on TSN-1 and they must disconnect it. Later there was a call back, about how it's going. He said he extinguished the fire and no firefighters needed. The funny fact is that the whole time not a single swear word was said.

author: AntiProtonBoy
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2016, 04:44:20 pm
content: That's a lot of juice. I love watching high power arcs and fires.

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2016, 08:56:30 pm
content: That noise is fantastic!

author: TerraHertz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2016, 01:36:44 pm
content: Quote from: wraper on April 15, 2016, 09:39:03 amThat's *amazing*.

author: rsjsouza
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2016, 11:38:02 am
content: That was a good video; as SeanB mentioned, they were really following good practice. What a day for these two...I found particularly handy to have good fire extinguishing material so close by (snow)...Also, thanks wraper do to some translations for us.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2016, 11:45:15 am
content: Not doing it daily, then print out the instructions, and have 2 there so the actions are called out, then read back to confirm the operation. Doing it daily you would still have the instructions there, and read them out and not have the confirmation other than done.Bad is not having the instructions and doing it.The old adage of the SR71 not being flight ready until the mass of the paperwork is greater than the mass of the plane applies.