The system’s general manager and CEO Paul Wiedefeld said: "While the risk to the public is very low, I cannot rule out a potential life safety issue here, and that is why we must take this action immediately. When I say safety is our highest priority, I mean it. That sometimes means making tough, unpopular decisions, and this is one of those times. I fully recognise the hardship this will cause.
"The investigation into yesterday’s cable fire at McPherson Square is ongoing," Wiedefeld added. "As a preliminary matter, the conditions appear disturbingly similar to those in the L’Enfant incident of a year ago, and our focus is squarely on mitigating any risk of a fire elsewhere on the system."
The shutdown, which the operator calls unprecedented, impacts all six lines and 91 stations.
Last year one person died and 83 people were hospitalised after a Washington metro tunnel filled with smoke.
