Driver Trapped By Live Wires After Truck Crashes Into Utility Pole In Milford
MILFORD (CBS) - A driver was trapped by live wires after crashing into a utility pole in Milford Tuesday evening.
Video from neighbors shows smoldering live wires in the road, and in nearby trees, moments after a Chevy Silverado veered off the pavement and slammed into the pole on Purchase Street.
It was about 3 p.m. when 911 calls summoned rescuers from both Milford and Hopkinton, because the accident scene is almost on the town line.
But for a time, they were handcuffed by the circumstances.
"There was about 20 minutes here," said Milford Police Sargeant Robbie Tusino, "where no first responder could do much."
That's because live wires were draped across the Silverado, where a man who was a passenger had already climbed out. But the threat of electrocution stopped first responders from getting the injured driver out.
"I saw a guy inside the truck," says neighbor Mauricio DeSouza, "but they told him to stay there because the wires were live."
"You're trained to go in there and help -- to save people," says Sgt. Tusino. "But you're stuck because if you go in there, you're going to be a casualty yourself."
It took 20 minutes that seemed like forever for power crews to shut down the electricity, and that's when rescuers plucked the driver from the wreckage with a serious head injury.
"He had to be carried out," says Sgt. Tusino, "and was still unconscious when he was transported to UMass.
His passenger was also taken to the hospital with only minor cuts. And for a driver coming the other way, it was nothing more than a scary predicament.
"He was literally trapped between two power lines," says Sgt. Tusino. "So, he just had to wait it out. But he was fine."
It was getting dark as power crews moved in to survey the repair project, where wires had burned their way down into the asphalt.
They hope to have Purchase Street re-opened by morning.
A witness who was driving behind the Silverado has told police that the injured driver never hit his brakes before slamming into the pole.
The Silverado is registered to a Milford man, but it's still unclear if he was the driver.