Tractor-trailer downs string of utility poles
A tractor-trailer snagged a low-hanging power line in Stoneham on Wednesday, pulling down seven utility poles on Montvale Avenue, leaving hundreds of residents without power, and trapping a person inside a car under the wires, officials said.
Montvale Avenue, a main roadway in the city, was not expected to be reopened on Wednesday night. Officials hope one lane will be open by morning, a spokesman for Stoneham police said.
Hundreds of households were without power for much of Wednesday. By early evening, 93 households were still without electricity, but seven temporary generators would be used to restore the power, said William Hinkle, an Eversource spokesperson.
Shortly after 9:30 a.m., officials received more than two dozen 911 calls reporting that several poles had toppled over on Montvale Avenue and that a driver had been trapped, officials said.
“The vehicle was not struck by a utility pole, but the occupant of the vehicle could not be freed from the vehicle until power was cut to downed wires,” officials said.
There were no injuries reported, officials said.
A preliminary investigation indicates the tractor-trailer brought down the poles, officials said. Eversource said 435 customers were without power Wednesday afternoon. Traffic lights at the intersection of Montvale and Interstate 93 were also without power initially but have since been turned on again.
A hazmat team was called to the scene because of two leaking transformers on the utility poles, officials said.
“We are still investigating exactly what caused all seven utility poles to come down at the same time, but we are sure that Montvale Avenue will be closed in this area for an extended period of time,” Stoneham Police Chief James McIntyre said.