What counts as an electrical emergency at home
Not every outage is an emergency — if your whole street is dark, the utility is the right call. It becomes an electrical emergency when the problem is inside your home and something is overheating, arcing or exposed.
An emergency visit focuses on making the home safe first: isolating the affected circuit, stopping the heat source and preventing further damage. Once the immediate hazard is controlled, the electrician explains what caused it and what permanent repair is needed.
What happens when you call
Get safe
If there's smoke or fire, get everyone out and call 911. If it's safe, switch off the affected breaker — only if you can reach it without touching water or damaged equipment.
Call and describe it
Explain the symptoms: smell, sound, what was running, and whether power is out.
Make it safe
The electrician isolates the hazard and checks for heat damage in nearby wiring.
Plan the repair
You'll hear what failed and whether it can be repaired on the spot or needs follow-up work.
Common emergency calls
- Burning or fishy smell from an outlet or switch
- Outlet or switch that sparked and went dead
- Panel that is hot to the touch or buzzing loudly
- Storm, flooding or roof leak that reached wiring
- Partial power loss with flickering and warm devices
Warning signs you should not wait on
- Smoke or melted plastic at any device
- A breaker that trips instantly every time
- Crackling or sizzling sounds behind a wall
- Tingling or shocks from fixtures, faucets or appliances
- Lights that suddenly brighten intensely or burn out repeatedly
Safety considerations
Safety first: Never touch a panel, outlet or appliance that is wet, smoking or sparking. Don't use water on an electrical fire. If a utility line is down near your home, stay at least 35 feet away and call your utility and 911.
What the electrician checks
- The failed device and the circuit's wiring for heat damage
- Breaker operation and whether it tripped as designed
- Panel bus bars and main connections for arcing
- Moisture exposure and insulation damage
- Neighboring circuits that shared the fault
Related electrical problems
Local pages for this service
Related residential services
Electrical Repair
Diagnosis and repair of dead circuits, failing outlets and switches, tripping breakers and other everyday electrical faults in your home.
Electrical Troubleshooting
Systematic testing to find the cause of intermittent power loss, tripping, flickering and other electrical faults that aren't obvious.
Electrical Panel Replacement
Replacing outdated, damaged or problem-brand breaker panels and fuse boxes with a new, properly sized panel.
Circuit Breaker Replacement
Replacing worn, damaged or incompatible breakers — including AFCI and GFCI breakers — with correctly rated parts.
Frequently asked questions
If the whole neighborhood is out or a line is down outside, call your utility. If the problem is inside your home — one area without power, a burning smell, sparking or a hot panel — call an electrician.
Yes. A burning or hot-plastic smell usually means a connection or device is overheating. Turn off the circuit if you can do so safely and call right away.
Availability depends on the time and your location. Call the number on this page and you'll be told what help is available for your situation.
Keep people and pets away from the affected area, leave the circuit off, unplug nearby electronics if it's safe, and don't open panels or outlets.