Work to test the safety of street lighting columns along Burnham seafront began on Friday (April 4th), a fortnight after strong winds sent one column crashing down onto a pavement.
Somerset County Council is using a specialised vehicle (pictured) to calculate the strength of 46 lighting columns along The Esplanade and a further 19 columns in the High Street.
One column on the seafront was brought down in high winds last month, making the testing work all the more urgent.
Burnham-On-Sea.com reported last month how the £2,000 cost of the mandatory tests would likely be met by three groups – Burnham and Highbridge Town Council, the Chamber of Trade and Burnham In Bloom.
The Town Council will pay for the seafront testing work since its decorative illuminations are attached to the columns, while the Chamber and Bloom groups will fund the High Street work since they use the columns for Christmas lights and flower baskets.
Tighter government regulations recently came into force, requiring the columns to be regularly tested for their structural integrity.
