COLONIE — A 34-year-old Bronx man crashed into several telephone poles along Central Avenue, knocking out power to more than 150 people on Wednesday, Feb. 16.
According to Lt. Robert Donnelly, the man was driving a Dodge charger eastbound on Central Avenue near Lansing Road North shortly after midnight at a high rate of speed. He veered across the median and the westbound lane and into a telephone pole, sheering it off at the base.
He “continued on the sidewalk, through several street signs and into three more telephone poles” before the vehicle got tangled in the wires and came to a rest in a parking lot at 2191 Central Ave.
A second car hit the debris and had to be towed from the scene.
The driver of the charger was semi-conscious and trapped in the vehicle when police arrived. He was extricated from the vehicle by the Stanford Fire Department and taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital with internal injuries. He remains in critical condition.
Central Avenue was closed in both directions from Berwyn Street to Lisha Kill Road for about three hours. One lane of the westbound lane remained closed for several more hours whole National Grid replaced the poles. As of 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 16, there were still more than 50 homes without power.
The investigation is continuing and more charges may be forthcoming. Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to call the Colonie Police Traffic Division at 518-782-2620.
