Construction accident knocks out M-town power for

[jfmuller 23]

Construction accident knocks out M-town power for hour

October 25, 2006

By Dianna Cahn

Times Herald-Record

dcahn@th-record.com

Middletown – A construction accident on Dolson Avenue knocked down a utility pole with 30,000-volt live wires this morning, knocking out power to the southern portion of the city.

No one was hurt but traffic lights were out from downtown across to Dolson Avenue for close to an hour until Orange & Rockland utility company could isolate the site and turn the power back on.

The accident occurred where the former Agway Farm store is being demolished. The site, which will hold a Rite Aid pharmacy and storage units, is directly across the street from O&R.

The incident occurred when a demolition tractor struck the utility pole, bringing the wires down onto the tractor, said 1st Asst. Fire Chief Kevin Duggan. The tractor caught fire, but the driver, who was unhurt, followed proper procedure and stayed in the vehicle until O&R could cut off the electricity.

“The driver did the right thing,” said Jeff Peifer, a division engineer at O&R.

Peifer said the area should have been marked with high voltage signs, and the pole should not have been touched.

I'd have a hard time staying in a burning tractor would you?

Of course there is always more info needed than what's in the paper. It always seems short articles raise more questions then answers.