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Basketball Fans Should Be Safe From Flying Manhole Covers In Indianapolis

Manholes Secured In Indy

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — An Indianapolis power company says it is inspecting all downtown manholes and underground electrical vaults and installing more locking manhole covers ahead of next week's men's Final Four.

Indianapolis Power & Light Co. said Thursday it has enlisted 50 technicians from Ohio and Illinois to help inspect about 1,300 manholes and vaults in the utility's downtown underground network.

IPL also is installing 16 additional locking manhole covers in high-traffic areas near Final Four activities. Thecovers are designed to pop up only a few inches in cases of extreme pressure in manholes.

The moves come a week after underground explosions caused by electrical arcing shot manhole covers into the air at a busy downtown Indianapolis intersection. The incident cut power to hundreds, but no one was injured.

(© 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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