Columbia Falls police

Columbia Falls police fielded dozens of calls about Sunday evening's power outage to most of the western half of town and surrounding countryside, after a power pole on U.S. 2 caught fire just east of Super 1 Foods. From about 5:50 to 8:50 p.m., firefighters were on the scene to close the highway, redirect traffic and provide backup for Flathead Electric workers. The power company continued working long after that time. Some homes had power restored within an hour or so. Others still had no power by 11 p.m. It reportedly affected Columbia Falls Aluminum Company on the northeast side of town.