Pest control vehicle crashes into pole, causing a power outage in Whitehall

WHITEHALL, Pa. — A crash knocked down a utility pole along Brownsville Road in Whitehall, leaving about 1,200 customers without power and creating traffic headaches on that busy South Hills road.

Police say an Orkin pest control driver lost control and crashed into the pole.

The driver was not hurt, but the crash initially knocked out power to about 1,200 customers in the Whitehall area and forced the closure of Brownsville Road between Curry Hollow Road and Baptist Road on Friday.

The closure also created traffic headaches. Semi-trucks couldn’t fit through the detour because of the low-hanging wires, so Duquesne Light crews had to repeatedly pause repairs and reopen the road to let trucks pass.

One neighbor who lives on the corner spent the day watching drivers use his driveway to turn around.

“It’s certainly gonna be a pain, ‘cause everyone is gonna be coming down here,” neighbor Mike Sabatini said.

Even with the inconvenience and the power outage, Sabatini told us he’s making the best of it.

“Fortunately, my daughter lives a mile or two from here. If I get bored, I’ll go over to her house. But what’s important is you don’t open your fridge, in case it takes longer,” Sabatini said.

Power was restored to most customers by late this afternoon, with outages dropping from about 1,200 to roughly 200 as Duquesne Light crews continued repairs.

We also tried to contact Orkin to check on the condition of the driver, but the company’s listed media phone number and email address were out of service.

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