Speed likely factor in Lebanon crash into utility pole

LEBANON - A New Durham, N.H., man was injured when his vehicle crashed into a utility pole and snowbank early Friday morning near the intersection of River Road and Route 202.

The accident occurred around 12:50 a.m. in the vicinity of Kamco Drywall just east of the Rochester line.

Matthew Henry, 27, was transported to Frisbie Memorial Hospital with what police are describing as nonlife-threatening injuries.

Maine State Police Trooper Adam Schmidt said it’s impossible to tell if road conditions were a factor, since when Henry hit the snowbank it spread a huge debris field.

“The truck bed had a bunch of nails in it and debris from the snowbank was everywhere,” said Schmidt, who added that it was thought speed may have been a factor in the crash.

The man’s vehicle, a 1997 Ford f-150, sustained heavy damage and was towed from the scene.

The road bends sharply to the left as it approaches a bridge over the Salmon Falls River and the New Hampshire line in East Rochester and has been the scene of numerous accidents in the recent past.

Several homes in the area lost power for a time due to the accident, which remains under investigation.