Jeep vs. pole ends in one trip to AMCC, Nome left in the dark
A drunk driver hit an utility pole on East 1st Ave in Nome early Sunday morning causing a power outage to much of the town.
The driver, who said he had been drinking, drove his Jeep into the pole at the northeast corner of E 1st Ave and Mettler Way, behind the Armory.
According to the Nome Police Department weekly press release, John Culp was arrested on charges of a DUI and criminal mischief in the third degree.
While there were enough wires to prevent the pole from toppling over, power went down for what NJUS calls “City 1,” running from Front Street all the way out to Banner Creek.
“He was very lucky the pole didn’t come down on him,” said Nome Volunteer Fire Dept. Chief Jim West Jr.
Nome Joint Utility System General Manager John Handeland explained the series of events:
Around 4:25 a.m. on Sunday, March 20, the Jeep driver hit and sheared off a primary power pole, splintering the wood and completely severing the pole from its base. The pole moved three to four feet, and in the process, the lines were twisted out of their holders. Loose wires created a short, which opened the breakers in the power plant, causing the outage. The power plant immediately started making phone calls, but it being early Sunday morning and during spring break, several people were out of town.
A little before 7 a.m., Handeland asked Chief West for help such as knocking on doors and communicating with those who were able to assist.
About two hours later, a portion of power returned to Front St. NJUS compartmentalized the system, allowing for a gradual restoration.
All power was back on around 10:30 a.m. and the pole was stabilized.
Handeland explained that NJUS is figuring out the costs associated with the incident, which will be the responsibility of the party involved. He estimated that it would be at least $5,000 for personnel costs and a new pole. Additionally, he has heard reports of people losing circulation pumps or circuit breakers, and NJUS is taking information on that, as well. “If there are folks that did have issues where they had to incur an expense to restore their water or wastewater or if they had something blew up as a result of this, please give our office a call so that we can document that and hopefully be able to pass that along to the responsible party,” he said.
Handeland also explained that replacing the pole will require another, planned outage, so a permanent fix won’t occur until summer, to prevent further freeze-ups.
West said that both the Aurora Inn and the Nugget Inn were affected. Both were full with Iditarod participants and spectators, and he said things would have been a lot worse if the power had been out for longer. Normally, he explained, anyone impacted would be taken to shelter at the Nome Rec Center, but volunteers were already setting up the Iditarod Finisher’s Banquet there.
Both Handeland and West thanked everyone who helped, from volunteer to apprentice to foreman.