SPRING LAKE — A single-vehicle accident early Tuesday caused all-day road closures on U.S. 40 and power outages for about 850 county residents.
A Pontiac Grand Prix headed eastbound on U.S. 40 ran off the roadway shortly before 9:30 a.m., hitting at least two utility poles before rolling on the east embankment of County Road 250W, said Capt. Robert Campbell, Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.
Two utility poles were broken completely and a third damaged, said Sugar Creek Fire Department public information officer Tony Bratcher.
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The vehicle striking the poles caused power lines to fall in the roadway, Campbell said; Duke Energy and other utility companies responded to the scene. The road was closed shortly before 10 a.m. and remained closed until 6 p.m., Campbell said.
The crash caused outages of power and AT&T utilities to area customers, Bratcher said. Some 852 Duke Energy customers were affected by the power outage, according to Duke Energy outage reports. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management responded to the scene to handle a small oil spill, he said.
Officers directed traffic at the intersections of U.S. 40 and County Roads 200W and 300W, asking motorists to seek alternate routes.
The driver of the vehicle, who has not been named, removed himself from the vehicle before first-responders arrived at the scene, Bratcher said. He told first-responders he believed his steering wheel locked up prior to the accident, officials said.
The driver sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to an Indianapolis hospital to be checked out, Campbell said.
