Leaning Utility Pole Worrying Residents Replaced - Philadelphia News, Weather and Sports from WTXF FOX 29

Leaning Utility Pole Worrying Residents Replaced

It wasn't a question of whether this leaning, dried-out utility pole would come down. It was a question of when, according to Willie Lockhart.

"It's very dangerous," said Lockhart, one of the homeowners on the 800 block of Rader Avenue in Yeadon.

"It looks like it's on it's last legs," said Mike Walker. "It's leaning over and the wood is all cracked. Probably one good strong gust of wind and it will come down."

"A good strong storms comes through, that pole is gonna snap on people's cars or innocent bystanders coming by," Lockhart added.

Neighbors said they had been complaining to PECO about the pole for a long time. Each day it seemed to lean a little bit more. They were worried for their homes, their cars and their children who like to play on the block.

Walker said, "I would hate to have that come down on anybody's kid, not just mine."

"I don't park in that pole's area," Lockhart explained.

PECO pole number 498 appeared to have been inspected recently, according to a tag on the pole. It apparently was reinforced back in 2002, and the heavy-duty screws were put in at some point.

Mike Walker said he called PECO just three weeks ago looking for help.

"The lady said she was gonna write it up as an emergency. No one has come out yet," he says.

Lockhart said, "You can tell it's leaning more and more each day."

Neighbors admit they're not experts when it comes to utility pole maintenance, but they believed that if the pole wasn't replaced soon, something bad would happen.

"It looks like it's just ready to go," Walker says.

"They need to get it fixed," Lockhart insisted.

"Repair it if they can or replace the whole pole. Just do something about it. Don't just leave it like that," Walker added.

PECO crews arrived to start work on the pole just a few hours after we starting making calls. Now, it's all fixed.

Residents thanked FOX 29 for getting results and helping them feel safe again.