200 Lincoln Co. homes, 2 schools without power after car crash

LINCOLN COUNTY, N.C. — Highway 73 near Little Egypt Road in Lincoln County is shut down after a crash took down power lines early Thursday morning.

The wreck happened near East Lincoln High School around 8 a.m.

Troopers told Channel 9 that an 18-year-old who had been working third shift at Walmart was driving home when he fell asleep behind the wheel and ran off the road, hitting the power pole and flipping his car.

He was able to get out of the car on his own and was not hurt. He was charged with failure to maintain lane though.

Catawba Springs Elementary and East Lincoln High School are without power. The schools will close at 10 a.m. Principals from the schools sent out a call to parents around 9:40 a.m.

Duke Energy officials said the power was restored in some of the area, but 200 homes and the two schools were without power.

Duke Energy workers told reporter Gina Esposito that it will likely be closer to 5 p.m. for power to be restored to the school.

The road is expected to be shut down until about 5 p.m.

Reporter Gina Esposito is out at the school asking officials about the crash and why it will take so long to reopen the road. See her full report on Eyewitness News.

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