Crash cuts town's power

A teenager is in a critical condition in Palmerston North hospital after his car crashed into a power pole in Levin overnight.

The crash closed State Highway 1 through Levin for more than three hours and parts of the town were without power after the crash.

Sergeant Dylan Earle said the driver in his late teens was taken by ambulance to Palmerston North where he was in the intensive care unit in critical condition.

He was the only person in the car when it crashed at an intersection in the town about 11.55pm.

"It appears he lost control on the corner and slid into a power pole," Mr Earle said.

The car and pole were badly damaged, while the impact brought wires down, taking power out in the northern part of Levin. SH1 reopened about 3.30am.

- NZPA