BELFAST, Maine — A single-vehicle crash at about 3 p.m. Friday on Route 141 took out a utility pole, cutting electricity to part of the city’s east side. The driver escaped injury, but more than 500 area residents were left without power.
The driver, whose name was not available Friday, was traveling south on the road, known locally as Swan Lake Avenue. About 2 miles north of the intersection with U.S. Route 1, the man lost control of the vehicle, he told police.
He told police he had recently been working on the power steering box on the full-sized, extended cab pickup truck. He suddenly lost the ability to steer, he said, and the truck veered to the left side of the road.
There were no passengers in the truck.
Belfast police officer Brian Lunt said the truck hit a tree, then the pole. The pole fell across the road, bringing down several wires with it. At 3:30 p.m., Central Maine Power crews were on hand, working to repair the damage.
Police diverted traffic from Route 141 at the Back Searsport and Smart roads. A section of Route 141 remained shut down at 6:30 p.m. and a dispatcher indicated it would likely be another two hours before it was reopened.
The driver apparently refused medical treatment, because he was seen inspecting the damage on the truck in a deep gully beside the road at about 4 p.m.
“He was able to get out of the vehicle,” Lunt said. “He was pretty lucky.”
Glad he’s ok. Should have bought a Ford.
Shouldn’t have done his own work. He was lucky, but so were all the others on the road.
Lucky the errant driver didnt hit a school bus full of kids.
Why , exactly was a 3 mile stretch of road closed
for one power pole being down?
he should have bought a ford, because it wouldnt have started for him to hit the pole.
The cops weren’t even smart enough to realize that people lived along the 3 mile stretch of road that they had closed down, they told people “sorry you cant go home.” Some people had children home alone after school, I don’t know who was in charge of closing the road down, but not allowing local traffic through was idiotic at best.
glad he is safe!
Heavy Chevy… Probably PabMainer after returning from shopping..