Fire broke out at the San Diego Gas & Electric power substation near Marine Corps Air Station Miramar late Saturday.
Several 911 calls were placed to authorities around 6:15 p.m. reporting the blaze.
Fire crews arrived to flames and smoke at the substation and soon discovered some serious challenges hampering efforts to put out the fire.
The area was energized and presented a threat to fire crews.
Also, firefighters said they had to determine whether attacking the fire would cause some kind of chemical spill before they moved in.
Once the two threats were minimized, crews put out the fire shortly after 9 p.m.
Officials initially said the blaze was caused by some type of lubricating fluid that caught fire. The reason the fire burned for nearly three hours was because the area was still energized.
None of the surrounding warehouses near the substation were affected by the fire, officials confirmed.
Additionally, officials said the fire posed no danger to the community and no toxic fumes were released.
