Something Exploded at Saratoga Substation – Here’s Why

Description

On Christmas Eve 2025, a fire broke out at Saratoga Substation in California, sending a plume of black smoke into the sky and knocking out power to up to 21,000 customers.

Within hours, speculation spread online — terrorism, sabotage, utility negligence, and profiteering by Pacific Gas and Electric. But what actually happened?

In this video, I break down the Saratoga Substation fire from an engineering perspective, using the limited publicly available footage and my professional experience as a UK transmission engineer. We look at:

• The substation’s 230 kV transmission layout
• How circuit breakers work — and how they fail
• Why the burn patterns strongly indicate an oil-filled circuit breaker failure
• Why firefighters were right not to actively fight the fire
• How poor maintenance, oil contamination, or mechanical failure can lead to explosions

This analysis cuts through PR statements and online misinformation to explain what most likely caused the fire — and what didn’t. No conspiracy theories, no speculation without physics.

This incident occurred just days after another fire at PG&E’s Mission Substation, which I’ll be covering next — including its long history of repeat failures and what regulators should already know.

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Sources:
https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/pge-mission-substation-fire-trouble-regulators/4001335/
https://www.sfgate.com/news/bayarea/article/sf-about-5-200-customers-remain-without-power-21257234.php