Truck snags wires and pulls down 70 power poles in Samut Prakan
A truck snagged on communication wires and later pulled down more than 70 electricity poles along a road in the Bang Pu area of Samut Prakan province today, January 30, causing widespread power outages in the area and nearby.
Officers from Bang Pu Police Station were alerted to the accident at around 1pm. The incident occurred on a bridge at the entrance to Bang Pu Industrial Estate on Sukhumvit Road, in the Bang Pu Mai sub-district.
Police and officials from the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) rushed to investigate the scene. Initial findings showed that a container truck accidentally caught communication cables while travelling across the bridge.
The truck continued moving, dragging the cables and pulling down more than 70 electricity poles along a stretch of about two kilometres.
The damaged poles, each around 12 metres high, collapsed in a chain reaction. Electrical equipment mounted on the poles, including transformers and other power distribution components, was also damaged. Fortunately, no pedestrians or motorists were injured.
MEA officials said the total cost of the damage has not yet been finalised but is expected to run into several million baht.
According to One31, the incident caused major traffic disruption and widespread power outages. To prevent severe congestion during the evening rush hour, more than 200 officials were deployed to clear fallen poles and debris from the road.
To restore electricity, MEA engineers adjusted the power circuits to supply electricity to some nearby areas. Additional teams were sent to the site to install replacement electricity poles and repair damaged power lines. Authorities aimed to restore power to all affected areas by midnight.
A similar incident was reported in Samut Prakan in December last year, when a trailer with its dump bed left raised struck a pedestrian bridge, causing it to collapse onto the trailer and a nearby pickup truck. The pickup driver was killed in that incident.
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