Unclear Why Branch Fell on Monday, Power Was Back on in 81 Minutes

The 54 National Grid electric customers in Hamilton had it back in about an hour and a half.

It is not clear what caused a large limb on a large, old Maple tree to crack and crash to the ground on Maple Street at about 2:30 p.m. on Monday, said Charlotte McCormack, a National Grid spokesman. There was no storm, heavy rain or wind in the area when it fell, so it could have just been old age, she said.

The outage was reported at 2:32 p.m. and a repair crew arrived about 15 minutes later. A crew from the and a officer stood by in the area until power was cut to the drooping line. Everyone had electricity back by 3:53 p.m.

“They had to call in a tree crew to remove it,” she said.