VERNON -- A man overdosed on opioids while driving his SUV early Saturday morning and crashed into a utility pole.
Vernon Police, Fire and EMS officials were dispatched to a single-vehicle accident on Route 83 near Dobson Road shortly after 3 a.m.
Arriving units discovered a 2006 Jeep Patriot had struck a utility pole, snapping it in half, before flipping over into a nearby wooded area. Live utility wires were also down and strewn across the ground.
Vernon Police located the vehicle operator, Luke Edwards, 21, who was unresponsive. He was found to be the only person in the vehicle at the time. Responders contacted Lifestar for emergency transport, then began treating the victim.
Police say that Edwards experienced an overdose while driving after using an opioid-like substance. EMTs were able to successfully administer Narcan at the scene, reversing the effects of the overdose. The victim regained consciousness just prior to being airlifted to Hartford Hospital.
Edwards' injuries as a result of the crash were later determined to be non-life threatening.
Once his condition stabilized, Vernon police officers placed Edwards under arrest and charged him with Driving Under the Influence and Failure to Maintain Lanes.
Route 83 was closed for most of the day, between Sunset Terrance and Pleasantview Drive, as Eversource and Frontier crews made repairs to the damaged power lines and replaced the utility pole.
Edwards was released on a $500 bond and is scheduled to appear in Rockville Superior Court on July 25th. Anyone with information should contact the Vernon Police Department's Traffic Division.
