Following an overnight during which it was inundated by tropical rain showers; a B717 suffered multiple electrical system failures shortly after takeoff. An emergency was declared and the flight diverted to the nearest suitable airport.
Synopsis
Following an overnight during which it was inundated by tropical rain showers; a B717 suffered multiple electrical system failures shortly after takeoff. An emergency was declared and the flight diverted to the nearest suitable airport.
Narrative
After just becoming airborne a load 'pop' was heard coming from the E/E compartment. Just after that the First Officer's flight director failed and a FCC-2 fail alert was displayed as well as a stall warning fault and right aft fuel pump pressure low. Aircraft was leveled at 16;000 FT to evaluate our situation. The First Officer continued to fly the aircraft and I called Maintenance Control and Dispatch. Mutual agreement [was] made to continue to our destination for maintenance and a possible aircraft swap. Approximately five minutes after this radio call the situation rapidly deteriorated. Numerous failure alerts appeared on the status page. The status page was completely full. At this point we donned our oxygen masks and I became flying pilot. We had no idea what we had and did not have. Emergency was declared and rapid descent made. We diverted to a nearby airport where we landed without further incident. We swapped airplanes and departed with all passengers. Crew did an excellent job and CRM definitely paid off in this tasking situation.The aircraft sat in tropical rain showers all night before our departure. The First Officer had to try and 'dry up' his cup holders from heavy water intrusion. Maybe we should include an inspection of the E/E compartment in preflights following heavy rain events.
Second reporter narrative
During preflight inspection; I noticed excessive water under the First Officer side window. It had rained the previous night and was still raining during preflight inspection. Water had accumulated in the cup holders. I removed the water but it continued to slowly seep from the sidewall under the window. The seepage did not seem to be excessive. An emergency was declared due to massive electrical failures. The airplane was within 15-20 miles from a suitable airport and a decision was made to land there. At the gate; external power was connected but; the external power would not come on line. A few seconds later; all six DUs failed and went blank. The Captain talked with Maintenance the next day. They said there was major water damage in the E/E bay. There were numerous items that were damaged and replaced including: Battery Charger relay; VIA 1; VIA 2; Comm 1; EPCU; one of the PCDUs; etc; etc. The airplane is on a watch list for the galley drain and First Officer side window.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.