Logging truck strikes home, knocks out power line in southern N.B. village

Multiple first responders are on the scene of a dramatic crash and rollover after a logging truck struck a home in Chipman, about 75 kilometres east of Fredericton, late Friday afternoon.

Residents living near the scene said the truck struck a home on Main Street, damaging the home and knocking out a power pole. The truck then flipped over on its side, spilling logs onto the street.

In a post on social media, the Chipman Fire Department said that Route 10 Between 321 Main St. and 420 Main St. would be closed for several hours.

"Please avoid that route and give emergency crews room to work," the post said. "We will notify when it opens."

Chipman Mayor Keith West said he has spoken with fire department officials, who told him the scene was "quite a mess."

West said he hadn't been there yet, noting he didn't want to get in the way of emergency responders, but said he will visit the site on Saturday.

He said he is concerned about the fact that the residents have had to leave their home and that a power line has been knocked out with a storm approaching.

"It's going to be a difficult weekend," he said.

Kyle Powers, a former volunteer with the Minto Fire Department, said the Chipman Fire Department, RCMP and an ambulance are all on the scene.

The crash did not appear to be weather-related, he said, noting the roads were "good, bare" Friday afternoon.

Chipman resident Courtney Boyd, who lives two houses down from the home that was struck, said she was just about to head into nearby Minto when the accident happened.

"It was a shock," Boyd told CBC via Facebook. "There were logs spread across the road and up against our neighbour's house and through the windows [and] the truck was laying on its side on the road."

She said a woman who lives in the home was there when the house was struck, but she did not know whether she was injured. The woman's husband arrived at the scene after the crash, and the truck driver was transported to hospital.

Boyd also expressed concern for the home's residents and about the impending storm, noting her power was knocked out after the accident.

"I'm hoping the temperature doesn't drop too much," she said.