Update 7:12 p.m. — Power restored to all but 40
Staff report
A woman who reportedly swerved to avoid three deer in the roadway struck a Pee Dee Electric telephone pole earlier this evening, knocking out power to more than 600 customers.
The incident took place at approximately 6 p.m. It’s not known if the driver, a 25-year-old woman, was injured in the incident. A total of 590 customers are impacted by the incident according to Pee Dee Electric’s online outage map. The majority of affected utility customers are situated around the area of Perry Williams Road and Oak Ridge Church Road.
A work crew was summoned to the scene to replace the pole. Power was restored to all but approximately 40 customers by 7:10 p.m., or about 70 minutes after the accident. Ashley Hayes, of Pee Dee Electric, said it could take up to two hours for the remaining customers to have power restored “due to the nature of the situation.”
One saving grace? It’s not insufferably cold this evening as it has been in recent days. The National Weather Service indicates it’s a cool but comfortable 50 degrees in Hamlet at 7:14 p.m.
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