An old oak dropped a big limb onto power lines next to Lake Norman Christian School in downtown Davidson Friday afternoon, knocking out power to the area and briefly closing South Street. The incident also shut down traffic signals on Main Street as rush hour began.

The big limb on fell from the nearly 100-year-old tree about 3:20 p.m. Initially, the limb sagged onto power lines next to the school, at 251 South St. The lines began smoking, prompting firefighters to respond to a report of an outside fire.

About 10 minutes later, shortly after firefighters arrived, the limb dropped farther, sending up a plume of smoke from the power lines. Firefighters and police quickly began steering cars and pedestrians away from the area.

Police were stopping traffic on South Street at South Main Street, near the CVS. Firefighters said Duke Energy had been called to repair the wire and remove the limb.

The road was reopened by around 4:30 p.m.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: This tree is actually in the front yard at 231 South St., the headquarters of DavidsonNews.net. We're without electricity trying to wrap up today's report using backup internet and battery power. We'll have more info as it becomes available. ]