Utility pole being replaced near Grove Elementary

MARYSVILLE — Drivers going past Grove Elementary should expect the stretch of Green Valley Road and 64th Avenue NE between Grove Street and 71st Street NE to be closed until as late as 10 p.m. Oct. 14, according to repair crews with the Snohomish County PUD and Frontier, formerly known as Verizon.

PUD Line Foreman Roger Olive explained that PUD received a trouble call at 11:20 a.m. for a utility pole that was reportedly struck by a vehicle at approximately 10:30 a.m. By 11:30 a.m., his crew was assigned to take the call, in part because they were already in the area, but they needed to gear up first.

"We needed to get a replacement pole and special trucks to help us grab the old pole, dig a hole for the new pole, and set up the new pole," Olive said. "Whatever hit that old pole did it hard. It broke pretty good."

As of approximately 2:15 p.m., Olive estimated that replacing the pole would likely take at least four hours, during which time that section of street would need to remain closed to traffic to accommodate PUD and Frontier trucks. Olive further estimated that close to a dozen workers from both PUD and Frontier have been on site, with half of those coming from PUD.

"The Frontier folks could be here even longer than us, to finish connecting the telephone and cable lines," Olive said.

According to PUD spokesperson Neil Neroutsos, there was no interruption in power as a result of this incident. Marysville Police Cmdr. Robb Lamoureux reported that the vehicle's driver remained on the scene until traffic unit officers arrived, and added that the driver is not being charged with a criminal offense.

Contact Marysville Globe Reporter Kirk Boxleitner at kboxleitner@marysvilleglobe.com or 360-659-1300 Ext. 5052.

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