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Tropical Storm Irene Snaps Poles, Trees On Chestnut Hill Street

CHESTNUT HILL (CBS) - A series of utility poles along a street in Chestnut Hill broke in half as Tropical Storm Irene ripped through the area Sunday morning.

Up to seven poles on Gatehouse Road, which is down the street from BC's Alumni Stadium, were either broken in half or left leaning on the slick street.

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WBZ-TV's Joe Shortsleeve reports.

"The big tree in my front yard snapped at the root level and ground level," said homeowner Jim Donovan, who said he noticed the tree down before 10 a.m.

Neighbors then heard a loud crack, which likely led to a chain reaction.

"That pole snapped in half, and that dragged down that one, which snapped in half, which kind of dragged down that one and then another one in front of our house," said Charlotte Allen, a neighbor.

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Remarkably, local residents did not lose power when the lines went down. However, because the wires were still live and it was wet on the roadway, crews shut of electricity to the immediate area so they could deal with the situation.

Homeowners on that street will likely be out of power until at least Monday.

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