It wasn’t long after Verizon Wireless completed installation of its equipment on the Bradenton Beach cell tower that customers had something interesting to call each other about.
A portion of the tower broke off and fell to the ground overnight April 26-27, according to an employee of Bradenton Beach Marina, 402 Church St. N.
Phil Connelly, who lives on the marina property, said he saw a piece of the tower hanging down April 26. He took a photo, called the nearby Bradenton Beach Police Department and kept an eye on the tower because he was afraid a panel might fall to the ground and hurt someone.
On the morning of April 27, the panel was on the ground in the parking lot, in pieces. He believes it missed hitting anything of value.
Brett Buggeln, president of Florida Tower Partners, which owns the tower that sits on city property leased near the public works and police departments, explained the incident April 27.
“One of the shroud covers came off because it wasn’t attached tight enough,” Buggeln said, adding the cover was “quite possibly improperly manufactured, so it did not stick correctly. That caused the wind to get under it and bend it and blow it off the tower.”
A replacement part, about 10-12 feet long, was ordered and a crew was expected to install it and inspect the tower April 30, he said.
The Verizon Communications equipment went live during the week of April 20. Not long afterward, people started watching a bulge in the shroud enclosing the 150-foot-tall structure.
Bradenton Beach Police Chief Sam Speciale, who is the city’s liaison to FTP, said he was told improper weight distribution caused the problem.
“The tower actually was swaying a little bit during a 10-mph wind, and the tower began to undulate,” he said April 27. “Basically it’s because there was no weight at the top of the tower and the lower Verizon canisters are full.”
When the tower was swaying, the panel began to buckle. Then the mounting screws broke, Speciale said.
Speciale said he was told the weight was low at the top of the tower because AT&T’s equipment has yet to be installed. He likened the situation to what happens when a bridge swings.
“That little bit at the top started swaying and it caused that harmonic motion to travel through the tower,” the chief said.
Speciale said he has no concern about the tower being a public safety hazard. “Absolutely none,” he said. “They had the engineers out here and they said there’s no worries about it at all.”
He added that he heard Florida Tower Partners plans to add some weight to the top of the tower that will serve as a counterbalance until AT&T installs its equipment.
No date for the AT&T installation has been announced.