Border Telegraph | News | Shock as tree collapses on power pylon

Monday, 8th September, 2008

Published: Wednesday, 18th January, 2006 10:37

Shock as tree collapses on power pylon

By Border Telegraph Newsroom

A CADDONFOOT couple were left badly shaken when a tree collapsed onto a power substation beside their house.

The tree, which stood in the grounds of Caddonfoot Church, was battered by high winds during last Monday night’s stormy weather.

The tree then crashed into the substation, sending sparks flying and plunging 600 households into darkness for two hours.

Anne Grieve, who lives beside the church, said: “If we hadn’t seen it, we would have thought a bomb had gone off. It really was very, very frightening.”

The tree hit the power station conductor, tearing down the overhead power lines and causing an explosion.

Mrs Grieve was in the kitchen of her house with her husband Robert when the incident happened.

She said: “We saw the explosion, and there was a noise and a flash. It was not until after we went out to see what happened that we found out what it was.

“There was massive panic in the house. My husband and I thought at first that we had blown a fuse, and we were scared to touch anything.

“The power cable ended up across the road. The police came out because we didn’t know if it was a live cable or a dead one.

“We were also concerned because the transformer was dripping fluid. We didn’t know whether it was water or acid or anything else, although it turned out to be oil.”

Police and ScottishPower workers soon arrived on the scene, and the A707 half a mile south of Caddonfoot Primary School was closed for a short time.

Mrs Grieve said: “The police and Scottish Power were fantastic. They made the thing safe, and came up about midnight to tell us.

“We didn’t know what to do or where to go.”

A ScottishPower spokesperson said: “The fault was due to the tree hitting the overhead line, and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.”

But Mrs Grieve harbours no grudges against the church.

She said: “I have no axe to grind with the church. It was an accident, and that is it as far as we are concerned.”

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