Molalla Pioneer Online

Monday wreck leaves 400 local residents in the dark

• By: Bethany Monroe  
• Published: 10/20/2009 6:43:24 PM

Photo By: Tim MaronayCrash
A few parts remain on the side of Highway 213 from the vehicle that struck a utility pole around 2:30 a.m. Monday.

An early morning car accident caused a power surge that damaged hundreds of electric meters and left about 400 Molalla area residents without electricity for most of Monday.

Around 2:30 a.m. Monday, a driver drove into a utility pole about two miles north of Marquam on Highway 213, said Oregon State Police Public Information Officer Gregg Hastings.

The accident forced a 52 kv power line to come into contact with a lower voltage power line, causing a power surge, Portland General Electric spokesperson Brianne Hyder said.

No one was injured in the accident. The driver was cited for failing to stay within the lane, Hastings said. Alcohol was not a factor.

PGE crews had restored power to the main feeder by 11:30 a.m. Monday, Hyder said, but continued to work throughout the day and on into the evening to replace about 300 meters that were damaged at homes.

When the power did return, some residents found that appliances and electronics had been damaged in the power surge. Hyder said PGE’s claims department is working with those customers and providing them with the driver’s insurance information. Anyone who had appliances damaged in the outage can call PGE customer service 503-228-6322 or 503-399-7717.

“We always encourage our customers to invest in surge protectors at the home,” Hyder said. “You can never be quite sure when there will be a surge, whether it will be from a weather related incident or not.”

PGE’s Web site offers information about surge protectors. An electrician can install a protector directly to a home’s electric meter. For more information, call PGE’s power quality hotline at 503-736-5750 or 800-270-7016.

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