A transformer explosion around 6 p.m. at an NStar substation caused flickering lights from the South Coast to South Boston as NStar's grid adjusted to the sudden loss of power.

The same basic thing happened in 2013 when a pole came down in Carver.

Two separate natural-gas incidents sent Cambridge firefighters scrambling along Mass. Ave., from Albany Street to Brookline Street.

Around 11:30 p.m., a gas main began leaking at Albany Street, possibly because a construction crew hit it. Then, around the same time, firefighters had to evacuate 8 Brookline St., several blocks away, due to high gas readings.

Jaybee reports power is out in the Rutland/Shawmut area, and that an NStar crew working there tells him it has no idea when the power will come back.

Thank God for Flour Bakery.

That sucking sound Dorchester residents in the area of Dorchester and Crescent avenues heard last night was a hazardous-waste company vacuuming up the oil that spilled out of two failed NStar transformers down a manhole - so that NStar workers could then repair the transformers.

The Supreme Judicial Court today upheld the basic logic behind a state decision to fine National Grid and NStar for their responses to Hurricane Irene and a snowstorm two months later, but said state regulators were a bit too overzealous in the fines they levied.

Scott Eisen cooked a romantic dinner by candlelight tonight, not because he wanted to, but because the power is out - to 2,700 Nstar customers, as of 10:20 p.m.

Noah reports that, mysteriously, the power at the Trader Joe's remained on.

Shortly after 8:15 p.m., Union Square went dark, the victim, Nstar says, of "damage to high voltage equipment." It proved an inconvenience to many, but a lucky few found it kind of nice, as Spatch reports:

Power outage in Union Square; the block with Bronwyn was affected. Anniversary dinner in growing darkness is very romantic.

Amanda reports a tree fell on the wires, plunging the Highgate area into darkness.

A concerned citizen reports on conditions in Chester Park:

Nstar placed nice little red flags out here in Chester park about two weeks ago. Hope they didn't need them. First, someone "collected" them and made neat little piles of flags here and there. And then they got mowed and shredded.

City Councilor Tim McCarthy (Hyde Park, Roslindale, Mattapan) says NStar has agreed to a community meeting on Tuesday to explain what it's doing to prevent a recurrence of the repeated power failures that left residents in and around Roslindale Square without lights or heat over the past winter.

The meeting, which Mayor Walsh is also planning to attend, starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Roslindale Community Center at Cummins Highway and Washington Street.