WATCH: Slow-moving transformer making its way from Londonderry to Manchester on Dec. 5, 2022. Video/Jeffrey Hastings
LONDONDERRY, NH — The New Hampshire Department of Transportation, New Hampshire State Police, Eversource, and several contracting companies worked to move a massive transformer from Londonderry to Manchester overnight Monday.
The transformer, which was assembled and loaded onto a specialized trailer weighs 375 tons, and was moved from Eversource’s Scobie Pond Substation in Londonderry to an industrial park in Manchester. Crews from JCR Utility Construction were in front of the trailer, raising utility lines and moving branches that were too low for the height of the transformer.
State police provided several troopers who did traffic control as the trailer proceeded from 2 to 5 miles per hour north on Route 28 toward Interstate 93 in Londonderry.
Edwards Moving and Rigging from Kentucky, a company specializing in moving large items, had several specially trained people operating the trailer. The trailer had more than 100 wheels on 21 axles, has motors built in, and was designed for extremely heavy loads.
Crews began the move at about 8 p.m. and reached the I-93 on-ramp at about 10:30 p.m. The trailer proceeded north on 93 for a short distance and then used a crossover to change to a southerly direction, this was due to the transformer not fitting under the overpass.
The journey continued north on Route 28 into Manchester and ended the trip in the early morning hours at an industrial park off Brown Avenue.
According to sources, the transformer will be placed on a rail car and then transported to Merrimack to a substation behind the Budweiser plant.
