Police say an underage driver who was under the influence wound up causing a power outage for hundreds of Central Hudson customers.

On Tuesday evening just after 10pm police responded to a 911 call about a one-car accident. The report said that a car had crashed into a telephone pole on North Broadway in the Village of Red Hook.

Upon arriving at the scene police found a 2016 Volkswagon beetle that had struck a telephone pole on the east side of the roadway and snapped it in half. The vehicle, operated by Emily Cavotti of Red Hook had damaged the pole so badly that it caused "major power outages" in both the Village and Town of Red hook.

Images of the incident show the vehicle off the road under the broken telephone pole. The pole, broken into two pieces, also held a street light which just barely missed ripping through the car. Live powerlines were ripped from the pole and left dangling in the street. Stuck in the ditch on the side of the road, the car appears to have suffered a broken windshield.

The 20-year-old driver was uninjured, but police claim she was drunk. During a roadside interview and investigation, police determined the driver was operating the vehicle under the influence and using an electronic device leading up to the accident.

The driver was taken into custody without incident and charged with two counts of drunken driving, both misdemeanors, and using an electronic device while driving, which is an infraction. Cavotti was processed and released with orders to return for a future court date.

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