Truck pulls down wires in Gurnee, closes library

A semitrailer pulled down both electrical and communication lines in Gurnee late Thursday afternoon, forcing the library to close for the day and the police department to route its calls through the Waukegan Police Department.

Fire officials said it was the second time in about three weeks that a semitrailer pulled down the wires at the intersection of O’Plaine and Brookhaven Roads.

Emergency crews responded to the intersection at 11:24 a.m. and found live wires draped across the truck with the driver inside, said Lt. Joe Arnold of the Gurnee Fire Department.

The driver of the semi was told to stay put for more than two hours until ComEd crews, still busy in the wake of Monday’s storm, were able to shut down the power.

The driver was not injured.

The Warren-Newport Public Library lost power, phone and Internet services along with a number of residences in the area, and was shut down for the day, Arnold said.

AT&T crews remained working to restore phone and Internet service to the library and surrounding areas late Thursday as services remained down, but the Warren-Newport Public Library is planning to be fully operational Friday, said Director Stephen Bero.

Southbound traffic on O’Plaine Road was shut down until 1:34 p.m., when the power was shut off to the downed lines, according to fire officials.

Copper communication lines to the Gurnee police station were also damaged, affecting internal communications and forcing the department to route 911 calls through Waukegan dispatchers, Arnold said.

Gurnee Fire Station Two was also affected and relied on radio for most of the day.

Police could not be reached for comment.