A Bainbridge man was arrested after he accidentally ran into a utility pole with his pickup truck Tuesday night and then fled the scene.

The accident happened just after 9 p.m. Tuesday at the corner of Eva and West Street and caused power to go out for a number of businesses and homes along West Street. Power was restored about 30 minutes after the accident happened.

According to a BPS incident report, Public Safety Officer Beau Harrell responded and saw power lines had fallen across the truck and across a street and the parking lot of the Decatur County Mental Health office.

One witness told Officer Harrell that the driver who hit the power pole had run into a house at 109 Eva Street. Harrell also noticed a trail of dripped blood leading toward the house and stopping. However, someone apparently picked up the driver and took him away from the scene and the home’s residents gave conflicting information about who the driver was.

Inside the truck, Harrell found an insurance card and paycheck stub bearing the name of Milton Bernard Samuel, 39, of 303 W. Green St. Apt. A.

While waiting for Georgia Power to repair the utility pole and clear the downed power lines, Harrell was notified by BPS Sgt. David Cutchin that two people had been admitted to Memorial Hospital for injuries.

Harrell went to the hospital and made contact with Samuel, who initially said he was not driving the truck. However, after he had been released from the hospital, arrested and taken to BPS headquarters to be booked, admitted he had been driving.

Samuel was charged with driving with a suspended license, striking a fixed object and leaving the scene of an accident.