AUGUST 7, 2015
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON —
At least one person was killed when a car smashed into a power pole overnight and then caught fire when live power lines fell around it.
Neighbors said the crash happened about 1 a.m. Friday when the car came speeding down Renton Avenue South near South 116th Place in Seattle’s Rainier Valley.
It crashed into a utility pole, flipping several times before catching fire.
The pole fell on top of the car and the fire nearly lit a nearby home on fire, but it escaped serious damage.
A man told KIRO 7 he was about to go to sleep when he heard the loud crash.
"I saw power lines and I saw the car and it started flaming a little bit, so I ran over and was yelling like, ‘Hey hey hey!’ Then I just got out of the way because tires started popping and things like that,” said witness Perry Troy.
Reporter Rob Munoz is working to get some official information from Seattle police, asking how many people were in the car and if they suspect alcohol or drugs were a factor.
At least one person is apparently dead, as the King County corner arrived before 5 a.m. and covered a body or bodies with a tarp.
The cause of the crash is not yet known.