‘Multiple’ fires reported after power outages in Waltham

More than 6,000 Eversource customers lost power for an hour around 8:30 a.m. Monday in Waltham due to a surge in the power grid, a spokesperson from the energy company told Boston.com. Multiple fires were reported.

“This morning, Waltham Firefighters responded to reports of multiple fires in Waltham due to a power surge,” a statement on the city’s website read.

The Boston Globe reports that the surge caused a fire in a single-family home on School Avenue. They also say that no one was injured, but 6 people were displaced. 

The blaze started when two light fixtures located near the front of the house exploded due to the surge and spread to the house, the Globe reports.

There has not been any information released by Eversource or Waltham officials about the cause of the outages, but Eversource tweeted that it was going “door-to-door” to talk to customers Monday and inspect their electrical equipment.

As part of the investigation into the outage, the energy company shut down power near Grove Street, Waltham Fire Department tweeted. Power was restored to the area by the afternoon.

They warned of possible small outages throughout the day as repairs were made.

Eversource also said there were some “isolated reports of damage,” and that it would assist customers with necessary repairs. 

Fire Chief Andrew Mullin told 7News he believes the situation Monday mirrored an outage in 2022 that caused a fire.

“From my perspective, it’s very similar — whether it’s the same or not for Eversource, I don’t know, but we responded to numerous incidents in a very, very short amount of time,” he said.

Eversource and the department have not confirmed if the outage was the cause of Monday’s fire.

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