Heavy rains during the night caused havoc with electric power lines in the metro area.
Xcel spokeswoman Ethnie Groves said the rains caused a power transformer on a pole near West Colfax Avenue and Bryant Street to catch fire this morning. That caused a power outage in north Denver, between Colfax and 33rd Avenue, from Interstate-25 west to Fox Street.Another problem with a wet transformer developed near Exposition Avenue and Broadway, affecting the power sporadically in the Washington Park area.
Emergency personnel, including Denver police traffic operations, reported some problems with their dispatching equipment. Numerous traffic lights were out temporarily.
Another 400 residences and businesses were affected by small, single-pole, single-transformer outages throughout the city, Groves said.
Some 3,000 Aurora residents lost power during the night in an area bounded by Alameda to Florida avenues and from Havana to Yosemite streets.
Crews are working to restore power.
Denver Fire crews extinguished a small kitchen fire in a home near 16th Avenue and Elm Street. No injuries were reported and the cause is being investigated.
will update this story as more information becomes available.
Staff writer Mike McPhee can be reached at mmcphee@denverpost.com or by calling 303-954-1409.
