Downed Power Lines closed portion of Maple Ave

Zanesville, Ohio- Downed power lines forced a portion of Maple Avenue in Zanesville to close this afternoon.

The roadway was closed shortly after two this afternoon between Military Road and Country Club Drive after power lines running from Wendys to Peoples bank fell onto Maple Avenue. Lieutenant Bill Shaw of the Zanesville Police Department shared details from the incident.

“A very large primary line failed and dropped on Maple Avenue and from what I’ve been told it was 7,200 volts. It caused quite an arching and a danger to traffic. Luckily we were able to get traffic shut down and nobody drove into the power lines and everybody made it through okay.”

American Electric Power suspects an individual hit a pole in the Tlaquepaque parking lot causing the lines to fall onto Maple Avenue. Maple Avenue was re-opened to traffic around four this afternoon. The incident remains under investigation.