Central Maine Power Co. was trying to restore electricity Tuesday night on Winter Street in Augusta after a car accident snapped a utility pole shortly before 10 p.m., cutting off power to the street.

Police at the scene blocked off both ends of the one-block street on the city’s west side with their cruisers, at Winthrop and Bridge streets, and were arranging for the placement of barricades to prevent drivers from entering Winter Street.  A CMP worker was cutting up the pole with a chain saw, clearing away the debris and removing the electrical wires that lay draped across the pavement.

Several neighbors stood in the dark on the sidewalks, watching the cleanup work.

A police spokesman could not be reached immediately for further details.