Walsall road closed after 'electrical manhole cover' fire leaves hundreds of homes without power
Fire crews have been dealing with a blaze that's led to the closure of a road this morning and hundreds of properties losing power.
Two crews from Walsall were sent to Wednesbury Road, Walsall, at around 4.30am after receiving reports of a fire in the open.
A West Midlands Fire Service spokesperson said the fire involved an electrical manhole cover, and National Grid were also present.
Around 300 properties on the junctions of Glebe Street, Mount Street and Tasker Street are thought to have lost power, with engineers hoping it will be restored by midday.
A spokesperson for National Grid said: “At 4.38am this morning, a fault on our underground network caused a power outage in the Wednesbury Road area of Walsall. Our engineers are working at speed to resolve the issue, and we estimate that all power will be restored by midday.
"We’d like to thank customers for their patience and understanding while we complete the work and are sorry for any inconvenience caused.”
Firefighters were still at the scene at 8am.
The fire caused Wednesbury Road to be closed, which resulted in numerous bus services being diverted.
National Express West Midlands said routes 4M, 11, 11A, 34 and 37 were being rerouted via Midland Road, while Diamond Bus' 4, 4H and 45 routes were going along Corporation Street, Queen Street and Bridgman Street.
