THE main street of Boyanup was blocked for more than three hours on Saturday after a dramatic vehicle accident.
A ute travelling south through the Boyanup town site hit a speed sign before knocking over a power pole and spreading power lines across the road before coming to rest on its side in the middle of South Western Highway.
The accident occurred in front of the Boyanup General Store, where owners Ray and Jo Gansberg were first on the scene.
They expressed relief that no-one was killed and said they were also extremely thankful the pole and vehicle veered in the opposite direction.
"It could have been our shop window that took the brunt of the crash," Mrs Gansberg said. "It could have been our shop that had a power pole land on top of it."
The resulting impact of the crash brought an instant response in the small town site as people began running towards the scene from several directions.
Quirky Den manager Denise Pianta said she was in her shop when she heard several loud bangs coming from down the street.
"When I saw the car on its side I just raced towards it to help the driver," she said. "As I was running I saw someone had already reached the vehicle and was helping a young man to get out through the passenger door."
According to witnesses the scene was quickly transformed by locals and motorists in an effort to divert traffic around the affected area to keep it safe.
Each end of the town site from Boyanup Dardanup Road to the north to Simmonds Road in the South was blocked off, with civilians hand ling traffic control on South Western Highway until police arrived a little later in the afternoon.
The antique shop adjacent to where the vehicle ended up had its mounting torn from the power line, while a similar situation happened at the telephone exchange where an overnight generator was installed to ensure continued telephone coverage for the area.
Western Power had the task of removing the downed pole and wires before digging a hole to accommodate the new power pole to recover power.
The driver, who is thought to be in his early 20s, was shaken but appeared to be unhurt.
CCTV footage showed there was no other vehicle involved in the accident or following the ute and police are asking for witnesses to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 if they can assist with details.
