Officials with Bell Aliant are in St. John’s to inspect the damage and conduct an investigation after a cell phone tower collapsed Friday night.
The top half of the tower fell onto a nearby commercial building around 6:30 Friday evening and has since been removed.
There were no injuries, and no immediate estimate on damages.
(Photo by Earl Noble.)
The toppled tower was cleared from the site on Saturday and the damaged building temporarily patched.
Bell Aliant officials say cell service was not affected by the incident and they are working with the manufacturer of the tower to determine the cause of the collapse.
Once the cause of the collapse is determined, Bell Aliant says the next step is to determine if the tower should be repaired or replaced.
(Photo by Earl Noble.)
Meanwhile, the City of St. John’s is working with Bell to help ensure the public’s safety.
Mayor Danny Breen says while federal regulations govern the antennas themselves, it’s the city that controls where the structures are allowed to be placed.
Breen states that they prefer antennas be placed on rooftops, rather than erecting a free-standing structure, or by placing them on cell towers already in place.
He says city staff will be reviewing the findings of Bell’s investigation.
The city has asked that Bell provide them with engineering reports on other structures in the city, and with the results of their investigation into the Blackmarsh Road incident.
