Water from Pressure Washing Leads to Phase-to-Phase Fault That Damages Bus Bars
Incident Investigation
Water from Pressure Washing Leads to Phase-to-Phase Fault That Damages Bus Bars
March 2, 2023
Electrical
Reference Number:
II-1516573-2023 (#32891)
Location: Osoyoos
Regulated industry sector: Electrical - Low voltage electrical system (30V to 750V).
Incident Overview
During cleaning at a plant, maintenance staff were pressure washing above electrical panels not rated for a wet environment. This led to water flowing into the wiring above the energized electrical panel, causing a short between phases on the electrical bus bar. Electrical bus bars melted and burned where the fault occurred, and circuit breakers were wetted. This incident was likely the result of the person spraying the water being unfamiliar with this electrical equipment and being unaware the electrical equipment was designated for dry locations only.