Woman injured in traffic collision

SANTA BARBARA — An elderly woman suffered moderate injuries Wednesday morning in a two-vehicle collision at the intersection of State and Arrellaga streets in Santa Barbara, authorities said.
The collision was reported around 11:15 a.m. Both involved vehicles, a silver vehicle and a silver SUV, sustained major front-end damage as a result of the collision, and the passenger side door of the vehicle had to be removed to extricate the woman, according to fire officials.
Once the door was removed, crews were able to treat the woman at the scene before transporting her to a hospital for further treatment. The drivers of both the vehicles were uninjured, authorities said.
The intersection was closed for a time following the collision, the cause of which is under investigation.
— Mitchell White
Utility van crashes into power pole

A utility van crashed into a power pole on Wednesday, leading to a widespread power outage in the Santa Barbara area.
SANTA BARBARA — A utility van crashed into a power pole on Wednesday, leading to a widespread power outage in the Santa Barbara area, police said.
The crash was reported around 4:10 p.m. in the 600 block of Meigs Road. As police and fire personnel arrived on scene, the power line was charged and the vehicle was electrified. The driver, who was the lone occupant, was rescued by three Good Samaritans, who reported the driver was injured after being shocked, said Anthony Wagner, spokesman for the Santa Barbara Police Department.
The driver was treated at the scene and no other injuries were reported. The pole sustained significant damage and appeared that it was “going to fall over,” Mr. Wagner said.
Portions of Meigs Road were shut down for several hours after the crash, the cause of which is under investigation.
Officials with Southern California Edison responded to the scene and shut down power to nearby customers. According to the SCE outage map, more than 2,500 customers were without power for a time on Wednesday.
— Mitchell White