Crash closes High Street in Sanatoga for the third time in two weeks

“PECO crews arrived on scene and cut off power to the affected wires and will remain on location to replace the pole and repair the downed wires.”

— According to a report posted on the police department’s Crimewatch page

LOWER POTTSGROVE » The Sanatoga section of East High Street is getting to be ground zero for downed utility poles.

For the third time in two weeks, township police are reporting the road’s closure because of downed wires.

This one, like the one on Wednesday, appears to have been caused by an intoxicated driver.

It was about 9:45 p.m. Thursday that Montgomery County dispatch received a call of an eastbound vehicle “observed operating in an erratic manner along High Street in Pottstown borough, and eventually into Lower Pottsgrove.”

The call came from a driver following the wandering vehicle which, according to the caller, “had nearly struck oncoming vehicles as well as parked cars along High Street,” according to a report posted on the police department’s Crimewatch page.

The caller told the 911 operator the vehicle accelerated “in excess of 55 miles per hour in the area of Heritage Drive when the driver “suddenly swerved to the right and struck a utility pole in front of 2148 E. High St., shearing off the pole.”

That address is in front of the former car dealership adjacent to the shopping center where Landis Supermarket is located.

The vehicle’s driver, who exited the vehicle just prior to the arrival by police, “had minor injuries but showed signs of probably impairment.”

Goodwill Ambulance transported the driver to Pottstown Hospital for a blood test while police closed all traffic between Sunnyside Avenue and Heritage Drive due to the pole and wires down in the road — again.

“PECO crews arrived on scene and cut off power to the affected wires and will remain on location to replace the pole and repair the downed wires,” according to the post.

Sanatoga Fire Department assisted on scene with fire crews and fire police from both the Sanatoga and Ringing Hill stations.

“Sanatoga Auto Body removed the heavily damaged vehicle from the scene and “East High Street will remain closed for several hours while the pole is replaced and wires repaired,” the site reported just before 2 p.m. Friday.

The crash occurred little more than a block east of the site of another crash, also involving an alleged drunk driver, that occurred early Wednesday and also resulted in a sheared utility pole, wires in the street and East High Street being closed for several hours.

In that case, police said 27-year-old Thomas Dempster had stolen a pick-up truck from in front of a home on Walnut Street and crashed it minutes later in front of 1929 E. High St., police said.

And on April 10, the Lower Pottsgrove Police reported the 2200 block of East High Street being closed due to poles and wires down, this time caused by the strong winds that blew through the region that day.