Firefighters and paramedics from Arlington Heights responded about 9:39 a.m. Thursday, March 25, 2021 to a report of an transformer that blew with a wire down that was arcing near Dunton Avenue and Euclid Avenue in Arlington Heights.
Firefighters on arrival discovered a power line down across a pickup truck and a small fire on a utility pole.
ComEd responded with several crew members. Initially about 350 ComEd customers were without power — some as far north as the neighborhood near Belmont Avenue and Maude Avenue. The power outage was quickly isolated to leave only about 15 customers without power near Dunton Avenue and Hawthorne Street. Power was restored to all customers by about noon Thursday.
A power line fell across the driver’s side of pickup truck that was parked at the southbound curb of Dunton Avenue just south of Hawthorne Street.
Arlington Heights Fire Department urges people not to exit a vehicle when a power line falls across the vehicle. Call 9-1-1 and stay inside your vehicle until firefighters, police or ComEd personnel tell you its OK.
If your vehicle comes in contact with a downed power line, follow these safety rules:
Stay inside your vehicle. The ground or area around your vehicle may be energized (UNSAFE: While getting out of a vehicle under these conditions, your body could complete a circuit, which can allow a deadly current to pass through your body and also cause severe burns).
Use your mobile phone to call 9-1-1.
Wait until the fire department, police or ComEd workers tell you it’s safe to get out of your vehicle.
Pacific Gas & Electric, which serves households in the northern two-thirds of California recommends the following guidelines to follow ONLY if a vehicle starts on fire when a power line is on the vehicle:
Remove loose items of clothing so that nothing snags on the vehicle and nothing hinders your exit.
Keep your hands at your sides and jump clear of the vehicle, so that you are not touching your vehicle when your feet hit the ground.
Keep both feet close together and shuffle (slide your feet) away from the vehicle without picking up your feet. Shuffling or sliding your feet to move away from a downed power line helps prevent electricity from conducting through the body from the bottoms of your feet. Without shuffling, when your feet are far apart and contact the ground, as in walking; the potential difference in electrical energy on the ground may cause harmful electric current to conduct through your body from one foot step to the other foot step when both feet contact the ground at the same time.
The information in this article is an early report published before any summary information was confirmed or released by police or fire authorities.
DEVELOPING IF CONTENT IS AVAILABLE …
MORE PHOTOS BELOW ADS
Stay informed with news from The Cardinal’s Emergencies Behind the Scenes Facebook page — Facebook.com/CardinalEmergencies. Includes links to favorite public safety and emergency rescuers and product manufacturers and safety companies that have facebook pages. Submit your pictures or just stay up-to-date on with fire, rescue, EMS and police photo galleries. Please add your public safety photo to the wall album — go direct to the Arlington Cardinal Emergencies Behind the Scenes photos. For a list of all of The Cardinal Facebook fan pages, go to Arlingtoncardinal.com/about/facebook …
Help fund The Cardinal Arlingtoncardinal.com/sponsor
