Lougheed Highway was shut down in both directions early Sunday morning after a car hit a power pole.
The single vehicle accident happened around 3:30 a.m. between Allen Way and Harris Road.
The older-model Nissan was travelling westbound when it left the road, took out the power pole, went through a fence and into a small shed on a property lining the highway.
Power lines came down low across Lougheed Highway causing the road to be shut down for close to four hours.
“It was right across both eastbound and westbound lanes. I think it powered one of those electric signs. So it wasn’t high voltage but it’s still a hazard,” said Brad Perrie, assistant fire chief with Pitt Meadows Fire and Rescue.
“We weren’t concerned about the voltage per se, but if a truck came along and hit that wire it probably would have pulled down the rest of that pole that was hanging and maybe more. Then it would have been more of a problem because it would have pulled down the high-powered lines as well,” he explained.
The lone occupant of the vehicle walked away from the scene and later made themselves known to the Ridge Meadows RCMP who were stationed at the corner of Lougheed Highway and Harris Road.
B.C. Hydro to the area by 12:39 p.m.
“It was a good thing it was a Sunday. Obviously if this had been a Monday morning or something it would have been havoc on the highway,” said Perrie.
Another car hit a power pole at about 6 p.m. Saturday evening at Wooldridge and Ford Roads in Pitt Meadows.
The lone male occupant of that vehicle was able to get out of his car before the vehicle caught fire.
“The power lines didn’t come down but the pole was damaged,” said Perrie.
