MOUNT CARBON - Early Tuesday, a truck owned by Weiner Iron & Metal Corp., Pottsville, knocked down the mast arm holding traffic lights on Route 61 at Mount Carbon Arch road in North Manheim Township.
"Some just don't fit underneath it," Lisa Mahall, engineer and real estate director for Schuylkill County, said Tuesday.
The county is responsible for the maintenance of the light. Mahall said the company the county contracts to repair its lights, Signal Service Inc., was at the scene Tuesday morning. A temporary light was put on a pole for southbound traffic.
The mast arm, which had been attached to the top of the pole, appeared to have been taken right off and the top of the pole is bent.
Weiner Iron & Metal, a recycling facility, is located at 1056 Route 61 South, a block away from the traffic light.
The accident occurred at 2:03 a.m. Tuesday. Responders included fire police from Mount Carbon and Pottsville. The scene was cleared at 3:45 a.m., according to a supervisor at the Schuylkill County Communications Center, Pottsville.
State police at Schuykill Haven investigated the accident. It was considered nonreportable because there weren't any injuries or significant damage, according to state police Cpl. Steven Kulikosky.
The trooper in charge of the investigation, Eric Reber, did not issue a public information report to the media Tuesday.
Kulikosky did not have many details when called for comment, but offered what the station had: "A Weiner Iron & Metal driver struck the SR 61 southbound traffic light pole. Southbound traffic affected. The owner of the traffic signal is dispatching a driver to the scene."
Kulikosky didn't have any information on the make of the vehicle or the name of the driver.
Signal Service representatives were at the site at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Mahall said.
Michael Brennan, vice president of the Weiner's had no comment when contacted Tuesday afternoon.
Mahall anticipates insurance will cover the cost to replace the mast arm.
"We have to repair it as swiftly as we can. To fix the pole, we'll be taking money out of our liquid fuels account. But we hope that will be reimbursed. We'll be calling the state police to get the police report and we'll turn it over to our insurance company and they try to get compensation from the driver's insurance company," Mahall said.
