GREENSBORO, N.C. -- — Driving around Greensboro you might can come across some leaning power poles. You might even think the poles are leaning far enough to the point that you're worried it might fall over.
So what can you do?
"We inspect hundreds of thousands of them each year as part of our pole inspection program. So as we are inspecting the poles, if we find a decayed pole we will replace that immediately," said Duke Energy Spokesperson, Meredith Archie.
When you see a Power Pole like leaning, it can be pretty unnerving. It might even look like one good gust of wind will topple it right over.
Duke Energy says they check poles year round, but if you see one that you're really worried about what can you do?
"We encourage customers that if they do see a leaning pole to call and report it. You can call 1-800-POWER-ON to report this so a technician can come out and evaluate the pole," said Archie.
Duke Energy has more than 4 million power poles between North and South Carolina so they can't inspect every single pole, which is why they rely on the public to report any poles they are worried about.
Remember though, just because a technician comes out to your area to look at a pole, it doesn't meant they will fix it immediately. Sometimes it might not look great but their engineers will determine it is still structurally sound.
Duke Energy says fixing a pole like this doesn't necessarily mean replacing the pole. They may just add some supports to make sure it doesn't fall over.
However, Duke Energy, like many of us, would rather fix the problem now instead of after a pole falls.
