A grandfather who was forced to direct traffic at Kurri Kurri for more than an hour was left shocked after police did not respond to the "potentially dangerous" incident.
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Ian McKenzie was walking down Victoria Street from Rawson Street with his partner and grandson on Friday, July 5 when he heard a "massive bang" behind him.
A truck had hit a power pole, which cut power to about 1300 homes.
"There were power lines flying everywhere. There was sparks and smoke, " Mr McKenzie said.
"Then power lines started coming down around us."
Mr McKenzie said the lines were down across two blocks on Victoria Street - lower in some areas than in others.
He saw the lines were about chest-height at the entrance to Rawson Street.
"I realised the issue of cars turning onto Rawson Street was critical," he said.
"Cars could have easily hit them."
So Mr McKenzie, who has previously been a rescue squad and State Emergency Service member, decided to direct traffic away from the fallen lines while his partner called triple-0.
But half an hour went by and no emergency services arrived.
"We called back after half an hour and it was like it was a new call, they didn't seem to have any details logged," he said.
"I couldn't leave - it was too critical."
I understand there are priorities, but this was a potentially dangerous situation.
- Ian McKenzie
Mr McKenzie said one car even ignored his directions and went through the intersection.
"It was a situation that required proper traffic control," he said.
After roughly 45 minutes to an hour, Mr McKenzie said Ausgrid arrived to rectify the issue and later on a traffic control team responded.
A spokesperson for Ausgrid said an outage was detected at about 12.30pm and crews attended to assess and repair the damage.
"The Ausgrid emergency crew ensured the area was isolated from the public and made safe before repairs were made," the spokesperson said.
Mr McKenzie waited around another 15 minutes or so, but still no emergency services arrived.
A spokesperson for NSW Police said "officers from Hunter Valley Police District were attending other calls for assistance at the time of the incident."
Mr McKenzie said he was shocked that there was no emergency service response to the incident.
"I understand there are priorities, but this was a potentially dangerous situation," he said.
"Someone made that decision not to come. I just question that judgement.
"Whilst it turned out okay, it should not have been up to me to direct traffic."