1:39 PM: A Seattle Public Utilities crew is wrapping up repairs on what they told us was a “small” water break related to a home-construction site near 48th/Sunset in North Admiral. We heard about it from a texter who lost water service as a result. SPU’s water-outage map wasn’t working so we went to the scene to find out more; sometimes water breaks also result in “brown water” nearby so if you’re experiencing that in the area, this might be the problem (always report it to 206-386-1800 even if you think you know the cause).

3:33 PM: More information from SPU spokesperson Brad Wong:

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) received a call today around 8:40 a.m. about a broken water main at 1925 Sunset Ave. SW in Seattle. SPU crews arrived and learned that a 1.5-inch water service line was damaged. Crews decided to do an emergency service repair, which required shutting down an 8-inch water main at approximately 11:30 a.m. The repair affected 28 customers in the area. As of 2 p.m., SPU crews had completed the repair. Water service is expected to resume this afternoon.

That photo is from a reader near Fauntleroy and Edmunds, reporting tap water that looks and smells bad, first noticed around 3:45 pm:

(It is) yellow-colored water with a strong bleach smell from the cold water line. It is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. The chemical smell is so strong that it actually smells like bleach, not a faint chlorine smell at all.

If you’re having water trouble, always report it to SPU at 206-386-1800; our tipster has called and is waiting to hear back.

3:59 AM: Thanks for the tip. Another power outage in West Seattle – this one much bigger than the one we mentioned earlier: More than 3,200 homes and businesses.

4:21 AM: Some just got their power back (thanks for the texts). The map now has the outage down to 2,800+ customers. As for a cause, one possibility – SFD responded to a call logged as a “transformer fire” around 3:25 am at Avalon/Andover, described by the arriving crew as a “pole fire.” … Archived audio for that dispatch includes a firefighter warning that it was “burning through to a high-tension wire” and calling for Avalon to be closed in that area.

4:48 AM: The map shows the outage is now down to 481 customers.

11:11 AM NOTE: Thanks to the texters who sent photos of the City Light crew at work earlier this morning. The outage wsa reported over by about quarter past 9. The photo above is from nearby restaurateur John Bennett, who notes this pole has had at least two previous transformer fires; in this case, lightning is blamed.

Thanks to Iris for the photo and report:

Sharing that our house has brown water running from all faucets in South Delridge. Curious if others have reported the same?

No emergencies on the Seattle Public Utilities water-trouble map, so it could be hydrant testing … nonetheless, discolored water should always be reported to SPU’s 24/7 hotline, 206-386-1800.

7:49 PM: Thanks for the tip. Power’s out for 248 residences in the Lowman Beach area and a bit beyond. One tipster says they “heard a boom” before the outage started around 7:35 pm.

9:28 PM: We’re getting reports of restoration. … The SCL map shows everyone is back on. We’ll follow up tomorrow regarding the cause.

ADDED TUESDAY: SCL spokesperson Jenn Strang tells WSB, “The cause of the outage was a branch that had fallen across a wire span near Lincoln Park Way SW and 47 Avenue SW.”

9:29 AM: Thanks for the tips. More than 300 customers are without power in The Junction, and the City Light map shows the outage overlapping much of the West Seattle Summer Fest zone (the festival is scheduled to start at 1 pm). We have a team member in the area now and he’s trying to find out more.

9:43 AM: So far the businesses we’ve found, north of Alaska (working our way south), all have power. And the festival crew tells us the food/drink booths run on generator power, so they will be up and running regardless. Please let us know if you’re in The Junction and ARE affected – thank you!

9:56 AM: As commenter Darren says below, and as we discovered at one business (Elliott Bay), power is reduced but not entirely out (Elliott Bay for example has 110 but not 220). The outage map now attributes this to “bird/animal contact.”

10:22 AM: The number of customers affected has dropped on the map to 143, less than half the original number.

1:14 PM: We’re at Summer Fest now, and so is City Light. Meantime, Junction 47 is still suffering effects of the outage, including – as noted in comments – the Junction Starbucks, which is closed until the power’s back.

7:23 PM: The map shows the outage resolved sometime since we last checked hours ago.

12:46 PM: Thanks for the tips. 4,400+ homes and businesses are out of power in West Seattle, including High Point and Westwood, (added) parts of Highland Park, Gatewood, and Sunrise Heights too. Part of west South Park is affected too. Updates to come.

12:53 PM: We haven’t heard of any obvious cause yet – no crashes or fires logged, for example. (Let us know if you see City Light crews zeroing in on any particular spot.) … The outage zone covers part of major streets including Delridge, 16th, and 35th, so please remember to treat intersections with non-functioning signals as if they are four-way stops.

1:24 PM: One texter reports a City Light truck near 25th/Myrtle. Meantime, if this is your first power outage, a reminder that the “estimated restoration time” on SCL’s map is entirely useless – the utility told us years ago that those times are basically wild guesses. And they often change – for example, a short time ago, this one was listed as 4 pm, and now it’s changed to 1:22 pm (though that time has already passed [update, at 1:40 pm they went back to a 4 pm estimate]). Could be a lot sooner than the estimate, could be a lot later.

1:32 PM: As this approaches hour 2, if you’re looking for a place to cool off, our area’s three fully air-conditioned libraries are all outside the outage zone and open until 6 pm – High Point (3411 SW Raymond), Delridge (5423 Delridge Way SW), Southwest (9010 35th SW). … (added) Meaghan at Highland Park Corner Store (7789 Highland Park Way SW) says they’re open, air-conditioned, with places to sit, purchase not required …

1:52 PM: Many are reporting they’ve got power back. The SCL map hasn’t yet updated so we don’t know if everyone’s back on.

2:04 PM: Map finally updated – 382 are still out.

The map also now describes the cause as “tree/vegetation.”

2:44 PM: Thanks to the texter who sent word that indeed, it was a falling tree limb on 25th:

3 PM: Everybody’s back on now, and SCL spokesperson Jenn Strang confirms that the cause was “a tree that came down onto some wires at 24th Ave SW and 25th Ave SW.”

11:05 AM: Thanks for the tips. Seattle City Light‘s outage map shows 139 homes and businesses out of power in the area shown in the screengrab above, east of Luna Park and on the edge of North Delridge. We haven’t yet heard what might have caused it.

1:35 PM: The map shows the outage has since been resolved. We’re checking with SCL on its cause.

5:23 PM: SCL’s Jenn Strang says it was a “brief unplanned outage” that happened during a “pole transfer.”

8:13 AM: Thanks for the tips. 248 homes in the Lowman Beach/Seaview area are without power this windy morning, as shown above in our screengrab from the Seattle City Light outage map. It’s a busy morning for the utility, with 16,000+ others also out on this breezy morning.

2 PM: That outage, which SCL’s map says started around 4:41 am, is not resolved yet. Nor has a 67-customer outage in the Pigeon Point vicinity that started at 5:50 am, 11 customers in Arbor Heights since 8:43 am, and one customer in South Delridge since 10:41 am.

3:21 PM: Thanks to the commenter who reported that the biggest outage, Lowman Beach/Seaview, is over, after more than 10 hours. We’ve had a message out to SCL for a while asking for the cause but haven’t heard back – they’re still dealing with thousands of others out around the city.

Two utility notes, both from readers in Arbor Heights:

ARBOR HEIGHTS POWER OUTAGE: Thanks for the texted tip about a 13-customer outage:

Seattle City Light blames it on “equipment failure.”

ARBOR HEIGHTS BROWN WATER: Thanks to Mark for the report about “brown water near 37th Ave and 97th St” early this afternoon. No emergencies today so likely hydrant testing again, but always report it to Seattle Public Utilities‘ 24/7 hotline, 206-386-1800.

4:05 PM: Thanks for the tips! 38 homes on Genesee Hill are out of power, and this is the likely cause:

Gary sent that photo and reports, “It was a transformer explosion…..fire truck has the alley south of the 4400 block of Genesee cordoned off. The transformer is still smoldering.” According to the Seattle City Light outage map, this happened around 3:11 pm.

MIDNIGHT: Power’s been restored since our last check of the outage map a few hours ago.

First “brown water” report of the week – from Scott, who’s a few blocks south of Hiawatha. No emergency responses on the Seattle Public Utilities water-trouble map, so it might well be hydrant testing, but always report it to SPU’s 24-hour line at 206-386-1800. (And hold off on laundry till your water’s clear – the “sediment” in the lines is mostly rust and it will stain light-colored clothing.)

Two reports of West Seattle brown water late today – one from The Junction, one from Admiral. The Junction tipster says the city told them it’s definitely hydrant testing; no incidents on the Seattle Public Utilities water-trouble map, so that may well be the cause in Admiral too. But if it happens to you, please report to SPU – 206-386-1800. (What discolors the water is sediment disturbed in the lines by activity such as hydrant use; it’s primarily rust.)

Two “brown water” reports so far today – one from Karen near 45th/Edmunds on the south side of The Junction, one from Crystal near California/Genesee in the north. No current emergencies mapped so it might be hydrant activity – SFD did have a short-lived gas-leak situation near 40th/Edmunds this morning, and firefighters usually connect to a hydrant precautionarily. Whatever the suspected cause, always report brown water to Seattle Public Utilities, 206-386-1800.

Just got a text reporting brown water in Alki. No Seattle Public Utilities work mapped in West Seattle – either emergency or planned – so it’s likely hydrant testing stirring up sediment (rust) in the lines again. We also have seen SFD doing some of that testing in south Gatewood today, near 35th/Thistle. Even if you’re sure that’s what’s happening with your water, ALWAYS report it to SPU’s 24-hour hotline, 206-386-1800. The discoloration is not toxic but can stain your laundry, so you’ll want to be sure the water runs clear before you wash anything.

Latest brown-water report came in late this afternoon from RB at California/Juneau, just north of Morgan Junction. No incidents so far today on the Seattle Public Utilities water-trouble map, so this too may well have been hydrant testing. As always, we remind you to report water anomalies to SPU 24/7, via 206-386-1800.