Photo by James Short.
The incident occurred Saturday morning at Gwynedd Crossing Shopping Center, by AMC 309 Cinema
An electrical transformer malfunctioned and exploded Saturday, sending debris onto the roof of Gwynedd Crossing Shopping Center and evacuating area businesses.
Fire Chief Bill Wiegman, who also serves as Emergency Management Coordinator and fire marshal, said pieces of the transformer electric cabinet were found in the immediate area, after the 11:08 a.m. incident.
“Two of the stores had positive carbon monoxide readings, and we ventilated those stores. One civilian who was in the area behind the shopping center at the time of the explosion was evaluated by EMS at the scene and refused further medical treatment,” Wiegman said.
PECO was called to the scene to repair the transformer, which left some businesses without power Saturday night. The scene was cleared by 1:30 p.m.
Fire Department of Montgomery Township were assisted by VMSC Emergency Medical Services, Fairmount Fire Co. of Lansdale, Colmar Fire, Wissahickon Fire, Upper Dublin Fire and North Penn Fire Co.
The original call came in to county emergency operations as a gas leak.
“There was no gas leak – It was just the smell of the burned-out electrical components of the transformer,” Wiegman said. “There was no natural gas involved in the incident, and the only gas indicated by our meters was carbon monoxide from the smoke of the exploded transformer.”
