Downed Power Pole Causes Power Outage, Oil Cleanup
Downed Power Pole Causes
Power Outage, Oil Cleanup
Sustained strong winds over the weekend, including gusts in excess of 55 miles per hour on Saturday, contributed to a power pole being blown over. The pole was located at 103 West 4th avenue, near Food-N-Fuel in Milbank.
According to Corey Kramer, operations manager with Otter Tail Power, Saturday, April 6, at approximately 12:45 p.m., strong winds and gusts blew down a pole with a transformer bank. “The Milbank fire dept and Otter Tail Power linemen responded and secured the area and made the situation safe,” he commented.
The loss of the pole and transformer caused a power outage impacting 50 residential and some business accounts. Kramer noted that power was restored to the residences at approximately 2:30 p.m. Food-N-Fuel was back on a normal power feed at 7:30 p.m.
Complicating the situation, the downed power pole was fitted with transformers that contained 60 gallons of oil, according to Kevin Schuelke, Grant County emergency management director. When it fell, it created an oil spill. “The Milbank firefighters and Otter Tail representatives were on scene immediately,” Schuelke said. “They contained the oil and used absorbents to soak the oil. It was then contained in containers for DANR and Otter Tail for inspection.”
The area is concrete and no waterways or storm drains were affected, Schuelke noted. The incident will create the need for continued communication between Schuelke’s office and the South Dakota Office of Emergency Management and the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the interest of public safety.
Other responding agencies included the Milbank Police Department and Al’s Body Shop, which provide the use of a sweeper for the cleanup project.
