By John Burton
RED BANK — An electrical utility pole fire this morning disrupted traffic on East Front Street in the area of Riverview Medical Center.
Contractors were working on the pole about 9 a.m. “something went wrong” and electrical equipment ignited, said Fire Marshal Thomas Welsh.
At this point it was unclear what caused the fire, Welsh said, on the pole located just west and across East Front Street from Spring Street. The fire was quickly extinguished and no one was injured.
One of the contractor employees, who declined to give his name, attributed the fire to “old crumbling wires.”
The incident caused the loss of electrical power to Riverview Terrace, 103 East Front St., an unoccupied building owned by Riverview Medical Center. It appeared that no other locations lost electrical service, Welsh said.
East Front Street between Spring and Washington streets was closed to traffic in both directions.
A Jersey Central Power and Light (JCP&L) crew arrived about 45 minutes following the initial fire and the roadway was reopened to traffic by 10:15, Welsh said.
