Exploding Transformers

An incident 30 yards outside my office window has caused me to do a google search on “exploding transformers”.

Here’s a good one.

There’s also a bunch of YouTube videos which I can’t access right now. I encourage you to go check it out.

Apparently it wasn’t an exploding transformer (there’s no transformer on that pole). It was a fuse cut-out blowing. These things are about the size of my leg, so I’m glad it wasn’t a transformer, which is considerably larger. The explosion was loud enough and bright enough to get a “Holy shit!” out of me.

It brings back memories of standing on Mt. Sandia, looking down at Albuquerque while a thunderstorm was sweeping across the city. You could see the bright purple flashes as transformers (or maybe cut-outs) were blowing.

The lesson for today is: When you have a large electrical thingamajob go kablooie right outside your window, don’t then immediately rush out and stare up at the power pole (which I did) and have a ring-side seat for the second cut-out blowing and giving you some nice flash blindness, plus a beautiful ringing in the ears. It was loud.

I can see that it’s still dripping burning dielectric on the ground. The electrical company guys don’t seem too worried about it, so I guess I won’t be.