Mass. Crew Escapes Injury After Power Line Falls on Rig

A one-car accident early Tuesday morning sent two people to the hospital and knocked out power in West Barnstable after a utility pole struck in the crash collapsed mid-rescue, endangering everyone on scene.

Around 12:15 a.m., the West Barnstable Fire Department and Barnstable Police Department responded to a vehicle rollover along Route 132, near Cape Cod Community College.

The vehicle, reported to be a 1982 Cadillac, was traveling north when it jumped a curb and rolled over into a tree and a utility pole, Sgt. David Myett said.

Rescue workers found a woman out of the car and the driver, Ethan Adams, 22, of West Barnstable, pinned under it.

The woman was transported to Cape Cod Hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Rescuers had to use a hydraulic tool to extricate Adams.

Midway through the extrication, the utility pole collapsed, possibly because of tension from the power lines, and a live wire fell on the fire department's ladder truck, causing sparks to fly and flames to shoot out from the tires.

"I've never seen anything quite like that. Amazingly no one got hurt," West Barnstable Fire Chief Joe Maruca said. "Our equipment crashed, started glowing and then caught fire."

An NStar spokeswoman said 686 customers in the area were without power for a little more than an hour early Tuesday morning. The pole was replaced later that morning.

Adams was taken by MedFlight helicopter to Massachusetts General Hospital for potentially life-threatening injuries. He was released after being treated in the emergency room, said a public affairs officer at the hospital.

The accident is still under investigation, and Adams is being summonsed to face charges of operating to endanger and marked lanes violation.

Copyright 2012 - Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, Mass.