Adams County is grappling with widespread power outages following a dramatic fire at a Met-Ed electrical substation in Tyrone Township. The blaze erupted around 8:48 p.m. on Monday, June 23, 2025, on Gardners Station Road, sending thick black smoke into the night sky and forcing emergency crews to shut down multiple roadways in the area. According to Adams County 911 records and multiple local reports, the fire severely damaged the substation, leaving thousands of residents and businesses without electricity amid an intense heatwave.
Firefighters and hazardous materials teams responded swiftly to the scene, with the York County hazmat team assisting in controlling thousands of gallons of leaking mineral oil, a byproduct of the substation's transformers. First responders managed to mitigate the spill’s progress, preventing further environmental damage. Despite their efforts, wires burnt loose from the substation fell into surrounding areas, igniting additional fires that complicated firefighting operations. Emergency vehicles, including hazardous materials units from as far as Letterkenny and Carlisle Barracks, remained on site well into the night, with Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) also dispatched to assist.
The impact on the community has been significant. Met-Ed initially reported that 13,500 customers experienced power disruptions due to the fire and a separate transformer failure at a Littlestown substation. Firefighters’ rapid response enabled power restoration to roughly 8,000 customers, but as of noon on Tuesday, June 24, approximately 5,500 remained without power. Todd Meyers of FirstEnergy, the parent company overseeing Met-Ed operations, told CBS 21, "We know how disruptive this is, especially during the high heat. We are committed to keeping our customers informed and supported every step of the way." He added that crews are working "around the clock" on repairs, though the complexity of the damage means outages are expected to persist for several days.
Repairs in the Gardners area, where the fire occurred, are projected to continue until at least 11 p.m. on Thursday, June 26. Meanwhile, the Littlestown area, which suffered a transformer failure earlier on Sunday, June 22, has also been battling outages. At its peak, over 4,000 customers in Littlestown lost power. As of Tuesday morning, around 2,000 customers there remained without electricity. Meyers shared that two temporary substations were being installed and expected to be energized by late morning on June 24, with hopes to restore power to all affected customers by noon that day. However, FirstEnergy’s outage map now anticipates repairs extending to 6 p.m. Tuesday in Littlestown.
The outages have struck during the first heatwave of the season, with temperatures soaring above 90 degrees. Power officials warn this heatwave is likely to push electricity demand to its highest in 14 years, exacerbating the strain on the system. Recognizing the hardship, Met-Ed has activated a free water and ice program at local grocery stores, offering two 10-pound bags of ice and two 1-gallon jugs of water at no cost from Giant stores in Gettysburg, Hanover, and Penn Township. Cooling stations have also been established, including one at 43 South Columbus Avenue in Littlestown and another at 144 Park Street in Bendersville, in collaboration with PEMA and local fire departments, to help residents cope with the heat while power is out.
Local emergency management agencies are coordinating efforts to assist vulnerable populations. Emergency dispatchers told CBS 21 that PEMA is working with Cumberland County’s Emergency Management Agency to provide transportation to cooling centers for those in need. The Adams County Electric Cooperative Inc. reported that a large FirstEnergy transmission outage also affected four of their substations—Shippensburg, Southampton, Tyrone, and York Springs—on Monday night. Met-Ed was able to reroute transmission and restore power quickly to three stations, while York Springs is currently receiving power through a backfeed from the Tyrone station.
The cause of the fire remains unknown. A Met-Ed representative at the scene admitted that the company has "no idea how this situation came to pass, nor how long it will take to rectify." An in-depth assessment of the Littlestown transformer failure will be conducted once power restoration is complete. In the meantime, residents are urged to conserve energy during peak heat hours to reduce strain on the system and to follow safety guidelines during outages.
The Red Cross has offered advice for coping with extended power outages, emphasizing the importance of checking on vulnerable individuals, keeping refrigerators and freezers closed to preserve food, avoiding the use of candles for lighting, and ensuring generators are used safely outdoors to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Residents are also encouraged to decide whether to stay home or relocate to cooling centers based on their health and the severity of the heat.
Social media posts and images from local fire departments captured the scale of the fire, showing raging flames and a dense column of smoke that could be seen for miles. Community members reported outages and expressed concern as emergency crews worked tirelessly through the night. Fire police maintained road closures around the substation well into the early hours of Tuesday, ensuring public safety as cleanup and repair efforts continued.
As of Tuesday morning, the number of customers without power in Adams County stood at approximately 8,096, including those impacted by the Germany substation outage near Littlestown on Sunday night. FirstEnergy and Met-Ed continue to provide updates through their outage maps and customer service channels. Residents are encouraged to stay informed and utilize available resources while crews work diligently to restore power.
This event highlights the vulnerability of critical infrastructure during extreme weather conditions and underscores the importance of emergency preparedness and community support. The coming days will be critical as Met-Ed crews labor to bring electricity back to thousands, while residents cope with the challenges of a summer heatwave without power.
