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Semi-truck pulls down wires outside Lordco

Power remains out for several businesses on Birch Avenue
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Emergency officials are working to extract the driver of a semi-truck after a live wire came down outside the Lordco Thursday. (Patrick Davies photo - 100 Mile Free Press).

A semi-truck struck low-hanging power lines outside Lordco Autoparts last Thursday, knocking out power for an entire block of Birch Avenue businesses.

The incident occurred just before noon as the driver was pulling out of Lordco’s parking lot. The trailer of the truck caught the powerlines and pulled them down, along with part of the roof from Higher Ground Natural Foods.

“We were working away, with lights and everything, when we heard a big kapow. We went to the back and saw sparks and that a big truck had pulled down the wires,” said Heidi Read, owner of Higher Ground.

With three live wires draped across the truck, 100 Mile Fire Rescue arrived a few minutes later and closed the street to traffic. The driver, who was visibly upset, was told to stay in his cab until B.C. Hydro arrived within a few minutes.

After assessing the scene, Hydro workers moved quickly to cut the wires and free the truck. BC Hydro spokesperson Bob Gammer said to do so, the workers turned off the power to Lordco Autoparts and 7-Eleven.

The driver declined to comment the Free Press, saying only that he found it ridiculous that the fire department was called out for a few downed lines. Lordco employees, who witnessed the event, said the wires have been hanging low for a while and they anticipated something like this would eventually happen.

Read said this is about the fifth time a truck has clipped the power lines. This incident, however, was was the most destructive to her shop, due to the hole made in the roof. She said the block’s landlord had been discussing ways with BC Hydro to raise the wire to 14 feet to avoid this happening again.

Read is now looking to find an electrician to inspect her store’s wires and someone to repair the side of the building so power can be restored.

“It’s very much up in the air but I hope it all happens quickly because we have fridges and freezers we need to power,” Read said.

Power was restored on Friday with a jury-rigged service line. Gammer said a permanent fix would have to wait until the building has been repaired.

“We would always encourage people when they’re building new buildings to make sure they have their service connections at a high enough safe level so we don’t see these kinds of incidents,” Gammer said.


newsroom@100milefreepress.net

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Emergency officials are working to extract the driver of a semi-truck after a live wire came down outside the Lordco Thursday. (Patrick Davies photo - 100 Mile Free Press).
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A BC Hydro worker carefully cuts on of the downed powerlines felled by a semi-truck by Higher Grounds Natural Food. (Patrick Davies photo - 100 Mile Free Press)


Patrick Davies

About the Author: Patrick Davies

An avid lover of theatre, media, and the arts in all its forms, I've enjoyed building my professional reputation in 100 Mile House.
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