Downed poles cause power outage
Published 5:30 pm Thursday, July 21, 2011
The Clanton Walmart was among the places left without power for most of the afternoon Thursday after a tractor-trailer carrying a mobile home pulled down power lines, according to store manager Tyson Elrod.
“We were down for four hours,” he said. “We had to pull products off shelves.”
Elrod said he was unsure of all the details, but said the incident was enough to delay reopening for hours.
“We were going to try to open back up at three,” he said. “But we’re having to wait till five. The power company had to put up two new poles.”
Authorities said that the incident was strictly driver error. The truck apparently hooked a guide wire, and snapped the poles.
The driver pulled over to investigate around Temple Road, after finding a safe place to pull over.
The first reported call concerning the incident was around 9:17 a.m., and power was restored around to most users around 10:26 a.m., but for some places like Wal-Mart near the scene of the accident, it was off for hours. An estimated 40 customers remained without power until 1:44 p.m., reported Alabama Power spokesperson Jan Ellis.
For updates on the story, check back with clantonadvertiser.com.