PORTSMOUTH — Many homeowners lost power early Wednesday morning after a car struck a utility pole on East Main Road and caught fire.

The driver of the vehicle, 30-year-old Edson Pereira, of 2 Summit Drive, Warren, was subsequently charged with driving while intoxicated, according to Portsmouth Police.

The Portsmouth Fire Department received several 911 calls at 1:26 a.m. regarding the accident, which took place at Church Lane, just north of Clements’ Marketplace.

Crews arrived a few minutes later to find that the operator outside the vehicle, according to a statement released by Deputy Fire Chief Michael O’Brien. Multiple poles had been damaged by the vehicle, with some knocked to the ground. According to police, one utility pole had been completely split in half. The vehicle was a total loss.

“Utility lines covered the area, (including) live power lines,” stated Deputy O’Brien.

Mr. Pereira was bent over outside his 2013 Hyundai Sonata, according to police, and was warned to leave the area due to the fire and live wires. He appeared unsteady on his feet, disoriented, and had alcohol on his breath, police said.

Mr. Pereira told police he was alone in the car and driving home to Warren from Newport when the accident took place. Although he said he wasn’t injured, firefighters transported him to Newport Hospital for an evaluation.

Firefighters were initially hampered in their efforts to extinguish the fire due to the downed power lines, Deputy O'Brien said. The fire was eventually put out after National Grid deemed the area safe, he added.

Crews contained fuel that was escaping from a ruptured fuel tank by using absorbent pads and covering a nearby storm drain, Deputy O’Brien said. 

Power was lost to the area, although the extent of that outage was not known by the Fire Department. Several fire alarms related to the power outage went off at the time of the accident, all requiring a response from the Fire Department.

The last crew returned to the station at 3:26 a.m.