Man Critically Injured After Severing Power Line

A construction worker was critically injured this afternoon when he accidentally severed a power line, triggering a small explosion and power outages to more than 2,000 customers.

The accident happened just after 3 p.m. at Via Oporto and Via Lido, according to Newport Beach Sgt. John Thulin. The unidentified worker was rushed to an area hospital in critical condition, Thulin said.

The outage initially affected 2,029 customers, but power was restored to all but 24 customers by around 4 p.m., according to Edison spokesman David Song.

-City News Service