East Maple has a new power pole, following an accident on Tuesday, Sept. 23 that left the old pole leaning to the side at an obtuse angle. Stanley Police and Fire each responded to the scene, setting up roadblocks and detours nearby as Xcel Energy was called in to make the replacement. Kwik Trip was closed at two of the three road entrances during the drama
Stanley Police Chief Lance Weiland shared more on the background to last week’s downtown drama after the fact.
“An employee of Haas was pulling a 72-foot conveyer and while attempting to negotiate the intersection by turning south on South Broadway Street from East Maple Street, a portion of the rear offset came in contact with a utility pole in the boulevard along the north side of East Maple Street, causing it to snap,” Weiland said. “The pole remained vertical but at a downward angle, supported by the attached power lines. The incident occurred at approximately 12:35 p.m.; Xcel completed the necessary repairs, and the adjacent roadways were all reopened around 4:40 p.m.”
So what does it take to replace a snapped power pole, without shutting down power?
Four Xcel trucks and multiple linemen, for one. City fire crews, blocked roads, and temporary detours, for another.
With roadblocks to made to cordon off the area and fire crews standing by, the main repair drama started past 1 p.m., an Xcel Energy truck used its hydraulic boom to stabilize the leaning power pole, with linemen from three more strategically placed Xcel Energy Trucks ascending via hydraulic boom to the top of the pole. Using insulators to protect their arms and prevent wire contact with the booms themselves, the linemen then covered the top three high voltage wires with orange insulators and secured these away from the damaged pole. Once the top wires were away a cut was made in the damaged pole to remove the top and bring it safely to the ground. A hole for the new pole was then drilled in the ground using an auger attached to one Xcel truck and the new pole raised alongside the damaged pole. The top three high voltage lines were then secured to the new pole and the insulated lines further down removed from the old pole for similar attachment to the side of the new one. The old damaged pole was then removed, the ground hole filled in, and traffic restored.