Fort Simpson (Feb 11/05) - A semi-truck with insufficient clearance ripped an electrical line from Deh Cho Hardware on Monday morning causing the Fort Simpson business to lose power for 11 hours.

Kirby Groat, owner of the store, said the truck driver, who works for a Drumheller, Alta.-based company, called him around 7 a.m. to report the accident.

Delaney Lacasse, of Prevost Electric, left, and Wayne LeBlanc, of the NWT Power Corporation, dismantle the broken power meter at Deh Cho Hardware in Fort Simpson. A semi-truck tore the meter and part of the exterior wall from the building when it snagged a power line. - Derek Neary/NNSL photo

The driver, before departing for Colville Lake, said he would pay for the damages, according to Groat, who estimated that the bill would easily be in the thousands of dollars. Some siding, part of the exterior wall and the power meter were torn away.

Groat said the incident is proof that a trucking route must be enforced in Fort Simpson, but not in a manner so heavy-handed that it will discourage truckers from coming to Fort Simpson. The store's freight is delivered through the alley behind the building, he noted.

At Monday night's village council meeting, deputy mayor Dennis Nelner, who works next door to Deh Cho Hardware at TJ's Grocery, said more pieces of heavy equipment are coming into Fort Simpson as they travel to industrial sites farther north. The semi-truck, he said, could have knocked down the power pole and cut off power to much of the community. He argued in favour of better signage showing Fort Simpson's truck route.

Senior administrative officer Bernice Swanson noted that the transport, which was supposedly guided by a pilot vehicle, did follow the designated route up until it tried to make its way into the parking lot across from the Nahanni Inn.

Coun. Norm Prevost added, "They look for a crack between two buildings. I don't think there's much we can do about it."

Semi-trucks and heavy equipment use the village's main street everyday, even though it isn't permitted, Coun. Dave Wright maintained.

Coun. Owen Rowe and Mayor Raymond Michaud agreed that the community should welcome the trucking business because it brings money into Fort Simpson. However, Rowe suggested that the RCMP or the bylaw officer should start issuing warnings to truck drivers who don't follow the proper route.

Swanson said she's considering having pamphlets made to be distributed to truckers at the weigh scales in Enterprise. The literature would clearly indicate the truck route and other places of interest, she said.