Thousands of Londoners, many of whom are working from home, were left with no electricity, internet and water. Bystanders reported that traffic lights in east London have gone down, creating major disruptions and confusion. There were also reports of household water supply stopping, as generators that pump water shut down.
Social media reports suggest that the blackout began at around 12:30 PM and are occurring across the capital city, from Whitechapel to Hammersmith.
UK Power Networks tweeted: “We’re aware of a power cut affecting the #E1, #E1W and #E14 areas of #London.
“Our engineers are working to get the power on as soon as possible.”
It was sparked by a major fire in Poplar, where part of an electrical substation has been ablaze as firefighters rushed to the scene.
A LFB spokesperson said: “Four fire engines and around 25 firefighters have been called to a fire at an electrical substation on Castor Lane in Poplar. Part of the ground floor of a two-storey electrical substation is alight. A 25-metre cordon is in place as a precaution.”
The LFB said part of the ground floor of the substation was still on fire in its most recent update at 5.29pm, but the cause of the fire is still unknown.
LFB has also announced that ten fire engines arrived at the scene, with up to 70 firefighters are battling to put out the blaze.
The TFL announced that the DLR had been also suspended due to “fault communications equipment”, although they haven’t confirmed if this is related to the blackout.”
But it is now back up and running with minor delays.
The power cut has put Londoners in a distressing situation, with one woman writing: “Please get it back on ASAP I have to walk up an autistic child in a pram up 13 flights of stairs if no lifts still by the time he finishes nursery”.
The blackout across East London has caused the Rotherhithe Tunnel to close down for nearly two hours, creating a massive queue.
Inrix traffic service said: “A101 Rotherhithe Tunnel in both directions closed, queueing traffic due to power failure from Rotherhithe (Rotherhithe) to Limehouse (Limehouse).”
A Twitter user named Warren said: “Power out in E14 and across a lot of East London #blackout
“Guess no ‘working from home’ for me this afternoon I’ll be sure to keep the fridge door closed so the beer stays cold #priorities.”
UK Power Networks data has revealed that over 4,000 customers across east London have felt the impact of the power cuts in the afternoon.
Disruption continued throughout rush hour, with commuters encouraged to take alternative routes.
The LFB said in an update: “The closures of the DLR, Blackwall Tunnel, Rotherhithe Tunnel and roads in the area could cause disruption to travel likely to go into rush hour. Please find alternative routes where possible.”
The Poplar DLR station is still closed, but the rest of the line is reportedly operating again, with minor delays.
Blackwall Tunnel has also now re-opened southbound, while TfL cameras appear to show massive queues forming around Limehouse and Wapping.
South East London appears to have been affected particularly badly by the cut, with serious traffic jams stretching into Greenwich, Woolwich, Lewisham and Deptford.
Citi Bank’s London office has also been affected as much of Canary Wharf has reportedly been impacted by the blaze.
The bank reportedly did not appear to have a generator to keep powering the building.
Or if it did, it did not appear to be function, efinancial careers reports.
A Citi bank source told efinancial careers: “People got stuck in the lift for circa one hour. I’m surprised that there wasn’t any contingency plan for such massive outage.”
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