June 13, 1994 (~estimated)

Electrical-line fire leaves part of PU powerless

A portion of the Princeton University campus lost power for about an hour Monday morning after an overhead electrical line caught fire in Princeton Borough.

The fire started at about 10:30 a.m. when insulation on a spliced section of 26,000-volt wire failed, said Priscilla Suber Brown, spokeswoman for Public Service Electric & Gas Co.

The fire burned for about 90 minutes, until crews from PSE&G arrived and shut off power to the line, said Ms. Brown.

The recent hot weather might have contributed to the deterioration of the electrical line, she said.

Princeton firefighters were kept on standby while PSE&G employees shut down power to the line. The firefighters extinguished a small grass fire started by embers falling from the burning wires.

No other property damage was reported and no one was injured.

Several Princeton University buildings east of Washington Road lost power. including the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Green and Frick halls, the Engineering Quadrangle and the creative arts center at 185 Nassau St., said university spokesman Justin Harmon.

The outages occurred while the school switched from the main Princeton electrical substation at 15 Wiggins St. to a university-owned backup facility on Elm Drive, said Ms. Brown.

No other customers lost power, she said.

A few buildings on the main campus also lost power or air conditioning for a short time, said Mr. Harmon.