The City of Oak Ridge has published photos of the work to replace the high-voltage steel lattice transmission tower knocked over in a single-vehicle crash at Union Valley Road and South Illinois Avenue on Friday.
The city said the Tennessee Valley Authority and Oak Ridge Electric Department crews are working together, with help from the Oak Ridge Police Department and Public Works Department, to “maintain a safe work environment for a very complex emergency repair.
“Crews are working to have South Illinois Avenue at Union Valley Road open as soon as possible,” the city said.
On Sunday, TVA said the repair work could be complete in time to re-open South Illinois Avenue, a four-lane roadway that connects Oak Ridge to Knox County, for the Monday morning commute. That’s assuming there are no delays due to weather or drilling problems.
Three people were injured when a pickup truck crashed into the transmission tower late Friday afternoon, and charges are pending against the driver. The crash, which knocked the tower over, caused widespread power outages.
Repair work has been under way since the crash, and South Illinois is closed between Lafayette Drive/Scarboro Road and Bethel Valley Road. Detours have been set up.
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