Toronto Hydro says it hopes to complete the replacement of electrical transformers below Toronto City Hall by the middle of next week.
One of the transformers, showing signs of age, was scheduled for replacement not long before it exploded, and the resulting electrical fire in the hydro vault forced the building’s evacuation on Thursday, Sept. 25.
Two people working in the vault were treated for smoke inhalation and around 1,500 employees at city hall weren’t able to resume work there until Monday, with five generator trucks providing power to the building from outside.
Standards for the equipment had changed, and two other transformers in the vault would eventually need to be replaced, so Toronto Hydro decided to replace them all, utility spokesperson Tanya Bruckmueller said Friday, Oct. 3.