Two telegraph poles put up by mistake in a West Cumbrian beauty spot have been removed.
Cleator Moor Town Council said the poles were accidentally erected near Hen Beck Bridge by the River Ehen, when they should have been placed 800 yards away in a field.
Steve Richardson, the town council’s clerk, said: “A contractor turned out on behalf of a broadband company to put them up and there was a mix up.
“They were given a nearby address of where to install some of these pylons, but unfortunately they were around 800 yards away from that address.
“I got onto the utility company and queries why they were putting them there, but the lads that were doing the work couldn’t do anything, they didn’t know what to do basically.
“So we got on to Cumberland Council who had issued the permit for the temporary traffic lights for the part of the road they were meant to be working on and basically it was then proven to them that unfortunately, they were in the wrong place.”
The area the poles were erected in is regularly used as a paddling and picnic spot by local people, which caused concern when pictures of the poles began circulating on social media.
But after they were erected at around 10am yesterday, Steve said they were later taken down at around 3pm.
He added: “Within an hour of us confirming with highways that they were in the wrong place, they were removed.
“What they’d done is they’d put the telegraph poles up on a green area in front of the beck and it’s a picnic area. It is a wee bit of a beauty spot, and the thought of having pylons next to your picnic is a little bit off putting, but it was a simple mistake.
“But I suppose they were good workers really, they got them up and down in an afternoon! But if you work together, you get these things sorted quickly and that’s what happened.
“Hopefully everyone will head down and enjoy the space when the nice weather comes now there’s no poles in the way.”
