Vehicle hits pole, knocks out power to 8,700

More than 8,700 Duke Energy customers were without power in Clermont County Sunday night after a vehicle hit a telephone pole and knocked out several transformers.

A car hit a telephone pole near the intersection of Summerside and Klatte roads around 8:15 p.m. Sunday and attempted to drive off, dragging wires with the vehicle, a Union Township Police official said.

The accident was near several transformers that were knocked out as a result, the official added.

At 8:11 p.m. Duke Energy reported that 8,756 customers were affected and without power north of State Route 32 and north to Milford. Around 9:30 p.m., the number was reduced to 4,148, but reached 5,335 again around 10:30 p.m.

Power was expected to be restored by 11:30 p.m. for some homes, but was not available for all affected customers, according to Duke Energy.

No injuries were reported. No further information about the driver was immediately available.