Crash on slick State 29 outside Kewaunee knocks out power for four hours

KEWAUNEE - The first noticeable snowfall of the 2022-23 winter season helped cause a crash that closed State 29 and knocked out power for more than four hours Tuesday afternoon.

The one-vehicle crash happened just before 3:30 p.m. on roads that were slippery from less than a tenth of an inch of light snow that fell periodically during the day, according to the Kewaunee County Sheriff's Department. A news release from the department said a 2001 Dodge truck driven by a 16-year-old Kewaunee boy was heading west on State 29 when he lost control of the vehicle just west of Kewaunee, between Birchwood Road and Angle Road.

The truck, which had a 15-year-old Kewaunee girl as a passenger, went off the highway and hit a utility pole, damaging the pole and knocking down several power lines. The deputy who responded to the call for the crash, realizing the potential danger from the downed lines, told the two occupants of the vehicle to remain inside until the lines could be safely removed.

State 29 was closed to traffic in both directions from Birchwood Road to Angle Road for about 80 minutes, until 4:53 p.m., according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, while a crew from Wisconsin Public Service responded to repair the damaged pole and lines. According to WPS, 14 customers were without electricity from the time of the accident until 7:38 p.m., when the repair work was completed.

Neither the driver nor the passenger sustained any injuries. The driver was issued a citation for operating too fast for conditions, and the sheriff's department noted in its release that drivers need to use extra caution when the weather causes road conditions to change at this time of the year.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Crash on slick State 29 outside Kewaunee knocks out power for four hours