Truck Malfunction Turns Into All-Day Traffic Nightmare In Vernon

VERNON, CT — A freak mishap with a truck during Thursday's morning commute turned into a 12-plus-hour traffic nightmare in Vernon Center, police said.

Buses and parents dropping off students at Vernon Center Middle School and Center Road School made it through the morning unscathed, but almost immediately after, a truck heading through Vernon Center on Hartford Turnpike neat West Street hit a pole, police said.

A mechanical arm seemed to have malfunctioned on the truck and it sawed off the top three-quarters of a utility pole, which then fell to the ground, police said.

Traffic near the Interstate-84 Exit 66 interchange was affected, as were school pickups as the repair work dragged into the afternoon.

The area was not completely re-opened to vehicles until about 11:30 p.m. Thursday night, police said.

No injuries were reported.