Am I right to understand that this condition was allowed to exist for hours? The risk to life and property caused by allowing this to continue is absolutely unacceptable... I certainly hope the power company was held responsible for all the property damage!
Our local power company (Portland General Electric) has cutouts on the HV at every transformer and junction... Understanding that their response may not be quick enough to save life/property, the fire department supervisors have been provided with hotsticks and the necessary training to open the cutouts if necessary.
