Electrical Fire Hurts 6 at Trade Center

[Kristin Moore]

Electrical Fire Hurts 6 at Trade Center
Published: July 24, 1992



An air-conditioning transformer five stories below the World Trade Center caught fire after an explosion last night, the authorities said. Six people were injured, none of them seriously, but the 110-story twin towers did not have to be evacuated, the authorities said.

The fire was first reported at 10:02 P.M. in a 13,000-volt transformer in the Trade Center's refrigeration plant, which provides air conditioning and ventilation for the complex, the Fire Department and the Port Authority said. The electrical fire, which went to three alarms, was brought under control at 11:24 P.M., said a Fire Department official, Lieutenant Erick Weekes.

The six people -- a firefigher, three Port Authority police officers and two electricians -- were taken to St. Vincent's Hospital, where they were treated for smoke inhalation, said Captain Robert A. Hannafey of the Emergency Medical Service.

The authorities said they had not determined the cause of the explosion, nor had they fully assessed the damage. But Terry Benczik, a spokeswoman for the Port Authority, which owns the Trade Center, said she did not expect the fire to disrupt the normal operation of the office complex today.

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/24/nyregion/electrical-fire-hurts-6-at-trade-center.html?ref=worldtradecenternyc