The present invention discloses a gas venting system for use in metallic enclosures housing electrical circuit breakers of the type having gas vents in the circuit breaker case for venting gases produced during the interruption of a fault current. The enclosure includes one or more covers which provide access to the interior of the enclosure and one or more vents through which the circuit breaker gases can exit the enclosure. The gas venting system includes a gas chute made from an electrically nonconductive and substantially flame retardant material. The gas chute is generally tubular and hollow in shape and has a breaker end aperture and at lease one vent end aperture. The apertures communicate with one another through the hollow gas chute. The gas chute is attached to an inside surface of the breaker enclosure such that when the enclosure cover is closed the breaker end aperture is in close proximity to and encloses the circuit breaker gas vents and the vent end aperture is in close proximity to and encloses the enclosure vents. Any gases produced by the circuit breaker during the interruption of a fault current and exiting through the gas vents in the breaker case must enter the gas chute through the breaker end aperture. The gas is then directed to the vent end aperture where it exits the enclosure through the enclosure vents.

There is provided an electrical enclosure that maintains a rainproof seal using a formed lip, an elongated nub, and barrel hinges with spaced apart members therebetween to allow vertical movement of the enclosure door.

A handle operated door latching mechanism for moving upper and lower latch members into and out of engagement with a latching surface of an enclosure which becomes distorted by internal gas pressure to pull the latch members away from the latching surface, has one latch member formed longer than the other to permit release of the latching surface by the shorter latch member and limited opening of the door for exhausting the internal gas while the longer latch member remains in engagement with the latching surface to maintain the door substantially closed.

A re-enterable environmentally sealed enclosure for housing circuitry and/or cable components of a communication network employs a removable cover attached to an enclosure base by a pivoting cam-tracking system. The tracking configuration positions the cover in a manner that, as it approaches the enclosure base when being closed, a seal located in the cover is evenly compressed along its entire perimeter against a corresponding mating surface on the base, thereby distributing the compressive force equally across the entire seal, with any shear forces substantially eliminated. A single tensioning system is provided adjacent the cam-tracking system, so that the tracking system does not operate as a counter-lever to the tensioning system, and visa versa, thereby improving the distribution of force across the seal.

A seal assembly for an electrical enclosure having a draw-out circuit breaker and a number of conductors is provided having a movable first seal member and a movable second seal member. The circuit breaker includes a protruding nose portion that is engaged by the first and second seal members in a manner that sealingly engages the nose portion. The arrangement of the first and second seal members and the nose portion provides for the sealing engagement to be maintained when the circuit breaker is moved from a first position in which the circuit breaker is not electrically connected to the number of conductors and a second position in which the circuit breaker is electrically connected to the number of conductors.