Staff Writer
HODGDON — Some Houlton residents were left, briefly, without power last Thursday after a two-vehicle accident on the Calais Road caused an empty log truck to wipe out a utility pole and bring power lines to the ground.
Pioneer Times photo/Ben Austin
NOT MUCH IS LEFT — Little remains of this transport truck after colliding with a minivan on the Calais Road in front of Northern Music Supply, owned by Tim Humphrey. Luckily, both drivers escaped without serious injury after the June 26 accident occurred. The van, pictured below, doesn’t look much better.
Chris Moran, 19 of Houlton, was driving south on the Calais road just before 11 a.m. Thursday to make a purchase at Northern Musical Supply. Moran tried to pull his 1998 Plymouth sharply to the left, across the opposite lane, into the driveway of Northern Musical Supply, and collided with the trailer truck. Harold Hollifield, 30 of Prentiss, who was driving a 2001 Western Star log truck lost control and went off the right side of the road into the ditch on the right shoulder, tearing down a pole, as well as the Northern Music store sign.
“I was in my garage at the time, and heard a big bang out front. I looked to see what it was and saw the truck running through the pole,” explained Tim Humphrey, owner of Northern Music Supply.
The accident caused some residents of the Houlton area to lose power for a varied amount of time, ranging from only 30 minutes to a few hours. The accident left the debris blanketed Calais Road shut down for two hours.
At the scene, the Houlton Water Company untangled the wires from the back of the truck, and cut apart the splintered utility pole which was hanging diagonally through the empty rear of the log truck.
Both drivers were taken to the Houlton Regional Hospital with minor injuries. Moran has been charged with failing to yield to oncoming traffic.
