Fire crews briefly swarmed the area near downtown Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park as they battled a blaze in an underground power vault, officials said.

Nassau Street has been reopened between Centennial Olympic Park and Ted Turner drives after it was shut down for nearly two hours, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center. Firefighters were called to the area around 4:30 p.m. after getting reports of thick black smoke pouring out of a manhole on Nassau Street, spokeswoman Alyssa Richardson said.

The response was labeled “a full assignment,” Richardson said. Businesses in the area were evacuated and Georgia Power specialists were brought to the scene.

The fire was quickly knocked down, according to Richardson, but one fire engine and another AFR truck remained alongside the Georgia Power workers until the scene was cleared. No one was injured.

An underground power vault is a room built below street level for access to public electric utilities, Richardson confirmed. They usually lie beneath closed and locked steel doors that are flush with the sidewalk or street.

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In 2022, Georgia Power projected its winter peak electricity demand would grow by about 400 megawatts by 2031. Since then, Georgia has experienced a boom of data centers, which require a large load of electricty to run, and Georgia Power's recent forecast shows peak demand growing by 20 times the 400-megawatt estimate from just three years ago. (Illustration by Philip Robibero/AJC)

Credit: Illustration: Philip Robibero / AJC