Electricity out for more than 16 hours east of Port Angeles after car hits utility pole

Published 12:01 am Tuesday, April 14, 2015

PORT ANGELES — Electrical power was restored at noon Monday to 966 customers in the Deer Park area just east of Port Angeles who had been in the dark for more than 16 hours after a car hit a power pole.

Power was cut at 7:38 p.m. Sunday and remained out overnight as crews worked to repair the lines and replace the pole, said Michael Howe, spokesman for the Clallam County Public Utility District.

Two people escaped injury when their car hit the power pole near Mount Pleasant Road and U.S. Highway 101, shearing it off and knocking out power to customers.

Two neighborhood lines come off a main line at that location and serve the Deer Park area, Howe said.

Zach M. Taylor-Armstrong, 21, of Port Angeles was cited for speed too fast for conditions, the State Patrol said.

He was driving a white 2001 Ford Taurus northbound on Mount Pleasant Road when he attempted a left turn onto Kemp Street, struck a utility pole on the northwest corner and sheared the pole off near the base, the State Patrol said.

Taylor-Armstrong was not injured. Neither was his passenger, Tesha L. Richardson-Kruse, 17, of Port Angeles, according to the State Patrol.

Both were wearing seat belts, and neither drugs nor alcohol were suspected to be involved in the wreck, the State Patrol said.

Clallam County Fire District 2 responded to the scene with 11 firefighters, an engine and two medical units, said Assistant Chief Mike DeRousie.

The intersection is a complicated one, with five feeder streets, and firefighters remained in the area for more than four hours for traffic control, DeRousie said.

“It was a mess,” he said.

He said power lines were hanging low, and there was concern that a large truck might snag the lines.

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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.