blaze erupted at a Con Edison substation in hawthorn, ny for several hours Sunday morning. Con Ed substation blaze in Hawthorne extinguished by dozens of firefighters.
(Photo: Frank Becerra Jr./The Journal News)
HAWTHORNE – Commuters can again board Harlem Line trains
after dozens of firefighters battled a blaze that erupted at a nearby Con
Edison substation for several hours Sunday morning.
The cause of the fire that damaged the substation
remains under investigation.
Firefighters began cleaning up the area before noon,
after pounding the flames with special foam, officials said. The unstaffed
substation caught on fire just after 9:30 a.m.
The fire closed the Hawthorne Metro-North train station
and a portion of the Harlem Line. The substation at 507 Commerce St. is about
15 feet from the tracks.
Metro-North announced at 12:07 p.m. that the
"Harlem Line train service has resumed between Mount Kisco and North White
Plains. Customers should anticipate some scattered delays while emergency crews
clean up the Con Edison substation fire."
Heavy smoke seen from a Con Edison substation in
Hawthorne Sunday Jan. 4.(Photo: Frank Becerra Jr./The Journal News)
The fire drew dozens of firefighters from several
departments, the Westchester County Hazmat Team and other emergency responders.
They descended on the substation just after 9:30 a.m., Mount Pleasant Sgt.
Michael McGuinn said.
"We got a number of 911 calls about smoke emanating
from the Con Ed substation," McGuinn said. "We dispatched the fire
department. Thankfully this happened on a Sunday, and not a Monday
rush-hour."
No injuries have been reported and no customers lost
power, Con-Ed spokesman Allan Drury said.
About 50 firefighters from Thornwood, Hawthorne,
Valhalla and Yonkers were at the scene. Yonkers firefighters brought foam to put
out the flames.
McGuinn said the police set up a perimeter, as
firefighters took over. The substation is located on the border of Hawthorne
and Thornwood.