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WALLACE — A few Wallace area residents used social media recently to discuss their concerns over damaged utility poles in the area that appear to be dangerous. Two of those postings on the Nextdoor app, said they had spoken with Duke Energy and town officials, but those contacts had yet to result in any action.
Duplin Journal reached out to Duke Energy spokesperson Logan Stewart, who investigated the issue and contacted the company’s local team.
“Both of the poles that were damaged were the result of traffic accidents,” Stewart said. “Those types of accidents happen to be the number one cause of power outages in the state, mainly from drivers texting while driving or some other distraction, by the way.”
Those concerned about the utility poles noted that at least one of them, beside the rear parking lot of Piggly Wiggly near the corner of West Southerland Street and North College Street, was damaged in an accident that occurred over a year ago.
In addition to the two damaged poles, others expressed concern about two trees that were lying across some lines in the area, which also appeared to need attention. One of those is located on South Rockfish Street near the corner of West Cliff Street At that location, a large, damaged tree is leaning on a line facing the road. Another tree is leaning on a line that runs along N.C. Hwy 41 between Walmart and I-40.
After speaking with a Duke Energy team in the area, Stewart told Duplin Journal that in the cases of the two damaged poles, a new pole had been erected after the accidents, but the damaged poles had yet to be removed because they contained lines belonging to communications companies that rent the pole space from Duke Energy. It is their responsibility to move their lines before Duke Energy can remove the damaged poles, Stewart said.
Despite that responsibility, Duke Energy has decided to hire a contractor at its expense to move the communication lines to the new poles, so that the damaged poles can be removed, according to Stewart.
The trees that are leaning on lines in the area are also the responsibility of the communication companies, as the trees are leaning on their lines, not power lines belonging to Duke Energy, according to Stewart.
