Last Update: February 10, 2023, 11:22 IST
City officials urged pedestrians to watch out for any street lamps that appear to be ‘dooping’. (Image for representation/Shutterstock)
The problem was discovered when an ex-councillor found a man lying face down on the ground near his house and noticed that six more people in the street were missing their lamps.
New Zealand’s capital is facing a strange problem – city lights. It may sound corny, but the problem is real.
Wellington, in recent weeks, has suffered a number of city lights collapsing without warning, crushing the pavement below.
What adds to the problem is the sheer size of the lights. The lamp’s head weighed up to 15 kg, about the size of a rice sack or a microwave oven. The Guardian reported that the lamps fell from a height of 4-6 metres.
Municipal officials have also accepted this problem. Wellington City Council spokesman Richard McLean said the council was aware of the problem and added that if someone did fall on you, “I think it would be safe to say you would either be seriously injured or killed.”
The problem came to light on Friday morning when a former councilor saw a man lying face down on the ground near his house and noticed that six more street lamps were missing.
The report said that the metal attached to the pole of the lamp had come away.
McLean said, “It appears to be an ongoing problem with metal fatigue or some other fixing … that holds the light to the lamp (post).” “We probably have only a few real incidents,” he said.
The council initially said around 100 lights were affected. However, it revised the number and said that there could be around 1,000 faulty lamps scattered among the city’s 17,000 lamp-posts.
“We know of maybe one or two or three that have actually hit the ground. But that doesn’t mean we’re not taking the whole thing seriously,” McLean said.
He has urged pedestrians to watch out for any street lamps that appear to “doop” because the lamps are discolored before they fall.
“If you see street lamps of any kind that are starting to hang at a weird angle, call the council,” he said.
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