Woman injured as car smashes into PSEG utility pole
This sedan smashed into a PSEG utility pole on North Ferry Road early Thursday morning.
An unidentified woman was injured in a single vehicle accident on North Ferry Road shortly after 9 a.m. Thursday when her sedan struck a PSEG utility pole head on.
The woman was transported to Eastern Long Island Hospital by a Shelter Island Emergency Medical Services ambulance. Her condition is unknown.
Because the pole was splintered when the car hit it, and wires connect to a major transformer, a PSEG crew was called to the site to erect a new pole and connect the wires.
Initially, Shelter Island Police were concerned that if the wires came down, it could result in a wide blackout in areas of Shelter Island, according to Chief James Read.
This pole holding a major transformer feeding the Island will be replaced by PSEG.
But once the vehicle was removed from the site by a towing service, he said he thought the pole could be replaced and the wires reconnected with little outage — perhaps affecting the single house in front of which the accident occurred. That’s located on North Ferry Road about halfway between Winthrop Road and West Neck Road.
Shelter Island Firefighters responded to the scene to ensure there was no leakage of fuel or other problems that could have resulted in a blaze.
Chief Read said the woman was on a straight-away northbound and apparently looked down at something on her seat and the car veered straight into the pole. He estimated the vehicle wasn’t traveling faster than the 40 mph speed limit in that area, but there were no skid marks, indicating no attempt to apply breaks, so the car didn’t slow before striking the pole.
