An hour without power

Deepa Bharath

An underground transformer burst Tuesday afternoon, paralyzing

downtown businesses and triggering widespread power outages in the

area, officials said.

No one was hurt when the underground vault outside Triangle Square

exploded at about 3:20 p.m., Costa Mesa Fire Department officials

said. About 2,000 customers lost power, but service was restored to

all but 22 customers as of Tuesday evening, said Steven Controy,

spokesman for Southern California Edison.

“We hope that situation will be resolved by [this] morning,”

Conroy said.

The affected restaurants and businesses in Triangle Square that

had to shut down for the rest of the day will get power back when

they arrive at work today, he said.

The explosion in the 1800 block of Newport Boulevard did not

generate an active fire, but sent quite a bit of smoke swirling up,

Costa Mesa Fire Battalion Chief Gregg Steward said.

“We don’t know what caused this,” he said. “But the force of the

explosion caused the concrete grill on the vault to come apart.”

The grill was barely recognizable. Bits of concrete lay strewn on

the sidewalk and street. A layer of dust and debris rested on two

vehicles parked close to the curb near the transformer. An iron

ladder that originally went into the vault had been blown out and lay

mangled on the sidewalk.

Harold Bishop, who was trying to go to the movies with wife Jean,

said he saw the concrete grill go up as the explosion occurred.

“We were stopped at the light on Newport trying to turn left on

19th Street,” he said. “All of a sudden, we heard this blast and I

saw a block of concrete fly up in the air and land back down.”

The explosion also caused traffic jams as Costa Mesa Police

officials shut Harbor Boulevard at 19th Street. Newport Boulevard

also grew busy and the California Highway Patrol issued a traffic

alert as cars backed up for an hour on the southbound Costa Mesa

Freeway.

Those shopping or just enjoying an afternoon out at Triangle

Square said they were shaken up by the blast.

“It was so loud, it seemed as if the whole building jumped up and

down,” said Daniel Wallims, who was painting with his sister, Lindy,

at Color Me Mine.

“I thought it was a bomb for sure,” Lindy Wallims said.

Robert Valle was at the ATM machine by the basement parking lot,

he said.

“It sounded like how it would when two cars collide,” Valle said,

describing the moment. “It was loud -- loud enough that it resonated

in your body.”

Following the explosion was a grinding noise, much like a motor,

he said. A split second before the blackout, the ATM machine spit out

Valle’s card.

“But I’m afraid my money’s stuck inside,” Valle said as he hurried

away to call his bank.

Restaurants and stores were plunged into darkness and forced to

shut their doors for the remainder of the day. Bigger restaurants

powered their freezers with generators, but smaller ones feared their

wares would perish.

Eric Amos, manager of Humphrey Yogart, said he feared for the 100

gallons of yogurt in the store’s freezers. He said he was cleaning

the fridge when he heard a blast and “everything went pitch black.”

“We just got a fresh shipment,” Amos said.

Several visitors to Triangle Square stood on the terrace and

observed the action below but were quickly dismissed by police and

fire officials. Watching such events can be extremely hazardous, said

Costa Mesa Police Sgt. Bob Durham.

“Whenever there is an explosion, we recommend people get away from

there,” he said. “They should migrate away, not gravitate toward.”

But for 7-year-old observer Olivia Taddeo, it was an event worthy

of a journal entry. The little girl jotted down the number of fire

engines that came on Newport Boulevard with blaring sirens. The book

only has three entries so far.

“My first one was about a birthday party I went to,” she said.

“The second one was about a movie I watched with my mom last night.

This is the third one.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at [email protected].