An underground electrical vault fire briefly disrupted a corner of San Francisco near Haight and Cole streets today, prompting a temporary shelter-in-place order for nearby residents. Firefighters contained the blaze before 6 AM, and no injuries were reported.
The San Francisco Fire Department said it received the report at 5:23 AM and arrived within minutes. Crews confirmed the fire was inside an underground electrical vault, while Pacific Gas and Electric Co. arrived to assess the scene and help firefighters make the vault safe for extinguishment.
ADVISORY
— SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT MEDIA (@SFFDPIO) July 31, 2026
On July 31 at 5:23 AM, the San Francisco Fire Department responded to the area of Haight and Cole Streets for a reported fire. SFFD crews arrived on the scene within minutes of the call and confirmed a vault fire in an underground electrical vault. Pacific Gas and… pic.twitter.com/C7KdVH9BHI
The fire was contained and brought under control at 5:48 AM, with the shelter-in-place order lifted at 5:50 AM. The cause remained under investigation, and the advisory did not identify a failed component or provide a customer outage total.
Fire Was Contained Before Morning Commute
The incident did not expose nearby structures, according to the department's account, and there was no report of injury. Officials also did not announce whether neighboring businesses experienced service interruptions.
For residents who encounter smoke, sparks or other electrical hazards, the San Francisco Fire Department says to call or text 911 for emergencies and use 311 for non-life-threatening hazards.
San Francisco has seen underground electrical fires before, including a 2023 Pacific Heights incident that damaged a car and windows; CBS News Bay Area reported that fire was linked to underground equipment failure. Friday's advisory did not indicate comparable property damage.
