About 1,100 Pepco customers in Foggy Bottom lost power on Monday, November 2, after an event at the company's I Street Substation. State Department facilities and George Washington University buildings were affected. Pepco said the cause was under investigation and saw no indication of foul play.
On Monday, November 2, approximately 1,100 Pepco customers in Foggy Bottom lost power after an event at Pepco's I Street Substation, according to the company. Another account put the number at 1,176 customers, with outages concentrated in Foggy Bottom, home to the US State Department. Other reports described the outage as reaching Foggy Bottom and downtown Washington. The outage originated from a Pepco substation on I Street NW.
D.C. Fire and EMS responded to reports of smoke coming from multiple manholes in the 1800 block of H Street NW, near the Farragut West Metro station. Pepco was on scene to assist with a power surge and electrical outages. A resident quoted by PoPville claimed a manhole exploded directly in front of the World Bank, though this was not officially confirmed.
Pepco said the cause of the outage remained under investigation and there was no indication of foul play at that time. Pepco said the probable cause was a failure at one of its substations. The company initially estimated power would return around 11 am, but later revised the estimate to pending assessment. Pepco said crews were on site working to restore power safely and as quickly as possible. The company asked people to stay away from work areas for their safety, and said affected customers can call 202-833-7500 for information.
A power outage on Monday morning affected State Department facilities, among others. A State Department official told The Daily Wire that multiple department facilities were experiencing an unscheduled loss of electrical power. According to Washington Examiner, several government agency buildings lost electricity, and buildings associated with George Washington University were also affected. Western Market, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund appeared to have lost power, and traffic lights were out in the area.
The outage affected all of GW's Foggy Bottom campus except seven buildings. GW IT confirmed it affected the Foggy Bottom Data Center and services such as GWeb and classroom technology, while inoperable traffic lights slowed traffic. A GW Alert at 11:37 a.m. said School of Medicine and Health Sciences and GW Law classes continued in person and remotely. Students having trouble entering their dorms were directed to the key depot at 2025 F Street for loaner keys.
