Iola city officials are continuing to gauge the extent of damage incurred during a power outage shortly before sunrise Tuesday.
The outage was connected to a traffic incident near the intersection of North Elm and Peach streets in east Iola.
Officers believe a passing semi-tractor trailer rig snagged a utility pole guy wire, which in turn flipped one of the electric wires, which sent a supercharged jolt of electricity through the circuit, Assistant City Administrator Corey Schinstock said.
The incident fried one of the citys transformers near the area, while causing extensive damage to electrical components at homes and businesses throughout town.
Iola firefighters were called to Great Southern Bank because the outage caused one of the banks servers to overheat. The small fire was quickly extinguished.
Calls to City Hall have forwarded to the Iola Police Department, because the outage stemmed from a traffic incident.
Iola Police Chief Jared Warner said they are seeking information about a truck witnesses spotted in the area at the time of the outage. The truck was white with Olathe on the door.
Officers are describing the incident as a hit-and-run.
For more information, call 365-4960.
