The alarm was raised by passers-by who noticed sparks coming from the power pole, along the coastal road around the headland south of Kamala Bay, and notified Akanay Kongboon of the Kamala Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor).
Mr Akanay in turn posted a public warning at 3:52pm urging people to keep clear of the power pole and arrived at the scene with rescue workers to direct traffic around the sparking hazard.
The rescue team attempted to douse the sparks with a chemical fire extinguisher, but the sparks continued and the cables and overheated, culminating in a “large explosion sound”.
Firefighters were soon at the scene and took some 15 minutes to bring the electrical fire under control.
No injuries were reported as a result of the overload.
Officials at the scene said that they believe the sparks and ensuing explosion were caused by too many cables being attached to the pole.
The cables short-circuited and sparked “across each other”, they said.
“The PEA (Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority) have shut off the power supply to the area,” Kamala Police Chief Col Somkid Boonrat told The Phuket News this afternoon.
“It will take some time to fix the power cables. We expect them to finish at about 7pm,” he said.
“If they are not finished by this time, Traffic Police will be posted there and install warning lights at the scene for after dark,” Col Somkid said.
“Meanwhile, please drive carefully,” Col Somkid added.