Police said an improperly attached trailer separated from a truck on State Street in Gorham Monday morning snapping a utility pole, cutting power to 1,000 homes.

The incident at 7:45 a.m. near the University of Southern Maine closed both lanes of the street (Route 25) between Flaggy Meadow Road and Husky Drive. No one was injured in the accident.

According to state police, the truck and trailer weren’t coupled correctly. State Police trooper Charles Granger said the rig is owned by Jordan Family Chipping Company of Parsonsfield and was driven by 20-year-old Michael Guillemette.

Granger said the company would be cited for unsafe operation. Granger said the coupling device wasn’t defective, and Guillemette is properly licensed.

Police said Guillemette had picked up the trailer, which was empty, at the Sappi plant in Westbrook. Guillemette was traveling westbound when the trailer-truck unhooked on an incline a short distance west of Gorham Village. “He was negligent on doing a pre-trip inspection when he picked up the trailer in Westbrook,” said Granger, who was uncertain how much the company would be fined.

Gorham Police Officer Wayne Drown, who was at the scene with Sgt. Dan Young and Officer Mark Sanborn, said two witnesses saw the incident. Drown said the high school and college are both closed and there wasn’t as much traffic as usual at the hour of the accident. “It could have been a lot worse,” Drown said.

Young expected power to be restored within four hours. He said “luckily” the trailer veered to the right and not left into oncoming traffic.

(truck 1) ut power. (Photo by Robert Lowell) (truck 2)