CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The WCNC Charlotte Defenders team is looking a troubling trend on the roads: cars crashing into power poles.
New data from Duke Energy shows there were more than 7,000 outages last year caused by someone damaging power lines; the majority of those are car crashes.
It’s an inconvenience for customers, but it could also impact your safety.
Duke Energy blames that increase on distracted drivers, often those who are playing on their phones. They’re not only causing danger on the road but leaving others in the dark.
“We are more distracted than ever,” said Duke Energy spokesman Jeff Brooks.
In roughly the past month, WCNC Charlotte has reported on a driver hitting a power pole outside Independence High School, another car hitting a utility pole on WT Harris Boulevard and an SUV that slammed into a pole causing a power outage in north Charlotte.
According to Duke Energy, the number of accidents resulting in power outages is increasing across the Carolinas.
“When vehicles hit poles, it can often affect thousands of customers,” says Brooks.
Duke Energy says last year, more than 7,000 power outages were caused by people damaging lines; the majority involved car accidents. It’s nearly a 10% increase from 2018, which had 6,400 power outages caused by people damaging the lines.
In October, a Ranlo police officer crashed a patrol car into a utility pole. After the crash, the department began investigating the cause. WCNC Charlotte obtained a copy of the dispatch audio on broadcastify.com.
“I looked down at my paper for a second, and that's when I hit the pole,” someone is heard saying on the dispatch audio on broadcastify.com.
In general, Duke Energy says the damage to power lines is often caused by people not paying attention while on the road.
“It’s leading to more distracted driving accidents, and that presents a real challenge for us as a utility, a safety concern for drivers, but also a reliability concern for customers,” says Brooks.
The new data from Duke Energy also highlights the growing safety issue for others on the road.
AAA recently found 58% of teen crashes are linked to distracted driving, and the risk of the crashing turning deadly is significantly higher when other teens are in the car.
“When you start entering other passengers, that’s when the risk goes up,” said Tiffany Wright with AAA. “Adults are just as guilty and they’re setting a bad example. “
The price to replace a power pole ranges from about $1,000 to several thousand dollars, according to Duke Energy. The utility company says they’re usually successful in recouping the money from whoever is at fault.
“In the event we can’t recover the costs from the individual or from their insurance, some of those costs will be passed on to customers,” Brooks said.
Duke Energy says already this year, there have been nearly 800 outages caused by damaging lines, including 100 outages in the Charlotte area.
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