Two crashes down power lines near Highway 41 in Fresno County

Two separate vehicle crashes knocked down power lines west of Highway 41 before dawn Monday, closing roads near Lincoln and Walnut avenues and forcing crews to clear a potentially energized hazard in Fresno County.

The California Highway Patrol said the first calls came in around 3:45 a.m. The crashes were reported near Lincoln and Walnut avenues, just west of Highway 41, where roads were closed for safety as investigators and utility crews worked the scene. Multiple roads in the area were shut down while responders dealt with the downed lines.

PG&E warned that power lines on the ground can still be energized, even if they appear dead. The utility says people should stay at least 25 feet away, remain in their vehicle if lines come down on it, call 911 immediately, and then report the hazard to PG&E. That guidance is especially important in fast-moving crash scenes like this one, where a broken pole or live line can turn a traffic collision into a broader public safety emergency.

The Monday crashes came after a string of similar power failures tied to collisions in Fresno County this year. On April 20, 2025, a crash near Walnut and Manning avenues left nearly 100 people without power and knocked down three additional poles. On March 15, 2025, a suspected DUI crash on Millerton Road near Marina Drive caused outages and road closures and left nearly 500 customers without power before crews restored service.

Those earlier incidents, along with the latest crashes near Highway 41, highlight how vulnerable the local grid can be when a single vehicle strike takes out poles and lines in a rural or semi-rural stretch of the county. For residents and businesses in the area, the immediate fallout is not just traffic delays. It can mean lost electricity, blocked access roads, and a longer morning for anyone trying to get to work, school, or a job site while crews make the scene safe.