Route 20 in Elgin back open after power lines removed

Authorities have reopened a section of Route 20 that they closed today after a truck hauling a large crane struck overhead wires in Elgin.

Police opened the road at about 3:30 p.m. Monday, said Deputy Police Chief Cecil Smith.

Officers had been rerouting traffic off Route 20 onto the ramps at the Route 31 interchange and then back onto Route 20.

The incident occurred at about 12:27 p.m. Monday when the crane struck overhead wires in the eastbound lanes.

"The ... top of the crane is what grabbed the top of the underpass and it brought the wires down," Smith said. "It was just a matter of getting the wires up off the ground."

Both east and westbound lanes on Route 20 were closed at Route 31.

Smith said no injuries were reported and that Comed crews determined the lines power the traffic signals at the intersection.

An Illinois Department of Transportation crew fixed the signals, Smith said.

• Daily Herald Staff Writer Lenore T. Adkins contributed to this report