Fire shuts down historic Savannah

An underground electrical fire in downtown Savannah has left much of the city's historic district without power. Fire officials say an electrical transformer in a service duct beneath the street caught fire Friday evening near City Hall, spewing thick smoke through manhole covers. Savannah Fire Capt. Matt Stanley said the fire burned for about 90 minutes until Georgia Power could shut off electricity to the area, enabling firefighters to extinguish the flames with water. Stanley said it would likely be several hours before power was restored. Police were directing traffic away from the area and setting up lights powered by generators as nightfall approached.

(Associated Press)