DWP Converter Malfunctions, Causes Smoke

Malfunctioning equipment sent heavy smoke billowing from a Department of Water and Power facility in Sylmar, causing an estimated $30 million damage at one of the department’s most important sites, DWP and fire officials said Sunday.

There were no injuries and no power outages to DWP customers, said Brian Humphrey, spokesman for the Los Angeles City Fire Department.

About 50 firefighters, including a hazardous materials unit, were sent to the Sylmar Converter Station East about 9 p.m. Saturday

“When firefighters made entry, they determined that there was no visible flame,” and initially thought the smoke was the result of overheating equipment, Humphrey said.

The problem was in the thyristor valve, a two-story-high piece of equipment that converts electrical currents into a form usable in homes and businesses.

Firefighters spent more than three hours at the site, pouring water on the equipment to cool it, Humphrey said.

Sandra Tanaka, a DWP spokeswoman, said the facility had been closed for a week because of a scheduled inspection and planned modifications.

“The electrical equipment failed during start-up testing,” Tanaka said. “Since the facility had not been operating for the past week, no customers were affected by this incident.”

The converter station is at the end of an 846-mile-long transmission line that transports energy from Celilo, Wash., to the Los Angeles area. That electricity is generated by a hydroelectric plant along the Columbia River.

At the Sylmar facility, the electricity is transformed from direct current to alternating current, said Rufus Hightower assistant engineer of the DWP’s power operation and maintenance division.

The cause of Saturday’s incident and the exact damage amount was not known.

“What really caused this is going to be the focus of a detailed inspection,” Hightower said.

The facility is owned by the DWP, Southern California Edison and Burbank, Pasadena and Glendale.