PALM HARBOR, Fla. — Southbound U.S. Highway 19 has reopened Thursday afternoon near Colonial Boulevard after a car crashed into the guidewires of a utility pole and caused its power lines to hang over the road.
An 18-year-old driver from Seminole tried to avoid another car that was switching lanes when they entered the west grass shoulder, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Moments later, they crashed into the guidewires.
The pole split in half and caused the lines to remain in the air.
The teenage driver was able to get out of the car in time before it caught fire and destroyed it, troopers said.
The southbound lanes were closed to traffic for hours before reopening.