Accident on Route 1A ties up Ellsworth traffic

ELLSWORTH – An accident late Tuesday night on Route 1A in Ellsworth knocked out a utility pole, creating a mess that was still being cleared well into Wednesday morning.

Wires strewn across the stretch of road forced officials to close Route 1A near the intersection of Route 179 and caused a headache for many during their morning commute.

“You couldn’t have picked a better pole in Ellsworth if you wanted to tie everything up,” Ellsworth police Lt. Harold Page said Wednesday afternoon.

Traffic heading south into Ellsworth was diverted off Route 1A at Christian Ridge Road, Page said. Northbound traffic was re-routed down Main Street to Route 1, which connects the other side of Christian Ridge Road.

Even with the diversions, traffic stalled considerably on Christian Ridge Road, which isn’t accustomed to handling a heavy volume of cars.

Among the delayed was Hancock County Superior Court Justice Jeffrey Hjelm, who was caught in the traffic and arrived about a half hour late to his 8:30 a.m. hearing in Ellsworth, according to the court clerk.

The relatively minor accident happened just after 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, but Route 1A didn’t open until 8:42 a.m. Wednesday.

A Bar Harbor man driving north from Ellsworth told police he swerved to avoid a truck that had pulled out in front of him from the nearby Exxon gas station.

James W. Clark III, 28, then lost control of his 2002 Chevy pick-up and crashed into a utility pole, a fire hydrant and a road sign.

Clark totaled his vehicle but suffered only minor injuries, police said.

Bangor Hydro Electric Co. and Verizon workers arrived on scene early Wednesday morning to sort out the mess of wires.

“Because of where it was and how many lines were connected to that pole, it wasn’t an easy fix,” Page said.