Pocono News Section

Bus Crash Leaves 3,000 Without Power

Bus Crash Leaves 3,000 Without Power - Wednesday, February 27, 2008 at 1:08PM EST

Reported by: David DeCosmo
Wednesday, Feb 27, 2008 @01:08pm EST

TAYLOR, LACKAWANNA COUNTY-The power is back on in one part of Lackawanna County after 3,000 homes lost power for part of the morning on Wednesday.

A COLTs bus knocked down electric lines in the Borough of Taylor after police said the driver was traveling too fast for the slippery road conditions. The bus crashed into a utility pole along Union Street in Taylor, causing a power blackout that initially affected several communities.

The bus was heading east when it approached a curve on the slick roadway. Officer Stephen Derenick of the Taylor Police Department explained what happened next. "The driver lost control on the slippery roadway,causing the tail end of the bus to spin out of control and hit the utility pole."

The driver was the only person on board. She was not injured. Police blocked Union Street as Pennsylvania Power and Light crews began working on lines to restore power to some of the affected areas. Obviously the blackout caused a lot of inconvenience for home owners as well as a number of businesses.

Direnzo Carpet Warehouse is right across the street from the accident scene. A small portable generator was the only source of power for the huge building.

Bob Rowinski of the Carpet Warehouse declared "We're closed right now. Basically that's it. No phones, no power, no deliveries, no anything. This would normally be a very busy time of the morning.”

The Riverside and Old Forge School Districts dismissed students early because of the power outage.

Most homes in the immediate area were without power too. For many, that meant no heat.

Neighborhood resident Sal Killino echoed that fact. "Right now in the house, the temperature is holding. There's no power,no phone for that matter and all I can do it just sit here and wait for the damn power to come back on. I don't know how long the house will hold the heat that I do have in there however."

Police said the bus driver has been cited for driving too fast for the road conditions. The power was resorted to most of the homes by mid afternoon on Wednesday.