Thousands of New Jersey residents were bracing for a sweaty night as utility crews raced to restore power knocked out by a Friday morning fire.
A substation fire around 11 a.m. plunged a large swath of Sayreville residents into darkness and injured a couple of utility employees. Estimates suggested some 6,000 customers were without power, and air conditioning, to start the warm Memorial Day weekend.
Two JCP&L workers had to be transported to a local hospital -- one for a burn to his hand, and a second who experienced a medical episode.
Officials had hoped to get power back up and running by the evening, but the latest estimate suggests impacted customers could remain without power until Saturday. The repairs required for the substation are said to be "extensive."
The full extent of the fire's impact and power outage was still being looked into, but at least one nearby school had to be dismissed early Friday afternoon.
The cause of the morning fire remains under investigation.
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