Fallen PSO Communication Tower Was Inspected In April

By Chris Wright, The News On 6,

Tulsa, OK -- PSO says a fallen communications tower will not affect service to its customers.

The 285-foot tower suddenly came crashing down Wednesday

The 26-years-old tower was about as tall as KOTVs but had passed inspection in April.

Local professionals say inspections of these structures are not regulated strictly and while collapses are rare, they do come with territory.

Like he does most days, Waldo Walden spent Thursday scaling a tower. He was performing maintenance on top of TPS's Education Service Center.

He says the PSO tower collapse was unnerving but not something he can afford to worry about.

"You just kind of put it out of your mind. It happens. If it's man-made it's going to fail, if it's God-made, it'll stay there," Walden said.

The twisted remains of the tower are still sprawled where they fell in Broken Arrow, near the B.A. Expressway.

It collapsed early Wednesday morning after PSO says one of its anchors broke. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

The tower was used for the company's internal communications, and it's spokesperson say customers will not be affected.

Stan Whiteford, PSO Spokesperson, said, "It is really not causing any major problems for us, and especially not for customers."

PSO says the drastic drop in temperature, combined with high winds, may have caused the anchor to give away and the guy wire to snap.

Regardless, it's not a problem the company is used to dealing with.

"I don't remember a time this has happened before," Whiteford said.

Waldo admits the possibility of accidents and collapses worry him but he shrugs it off, pointing out that people in his line of work are a special breed.

Why does he do it?

"Because I'm not right in the head if you want the honest answer," Walden said.

The Telecommunications Infrastructure Association recommends inspecting towers at least once every three years.

Local professionals we spoke to say it's really up to the company that owns the tower, as well as its insurance company, to determine how often towers are inspected.