Ferriday — An 18-wheeler driver attempting to take a shortcut across a gravel parking lot Monday hit a power line, knocking out electricity for the town of Ferriday, officials say.

A large, red Averitt truck with a cobweb of power lines trailing it sat catty-cornered across E.E. Wallace Boulevard in Ferriday Monday evening as Entergy trucks, Ferriday police and firemen diverted traffic.

The lines overhead — and hovering close to the ground — were dead, at least for the most part, Ferriday Fire Chief Joe Sontoyo said, standing under a darkened traffic light.

Sontoyo said the driver of the truck, who was unhurt and did not wish to be identified, told officials he had been attempting to take a shortcut across a parking lot at the corner of Mickey Gilley Drive and E.E. Wallace Boulevard when his truck caught a powerline, snapping the two poles nearest to him and pulling a host of wires down on the street.

“I guess he thought he could make it and, like dominoes, he just pulled it all down,” said Kenny Simpson, an Entergy lineman working on the outage. “I imagine the people here saw some fireworks.”

Sontoyo said he and his firemen arrived at approximately 5:34, just minutes after the incident, and blocked off E.E. Wallace Boulevard from Alabama Street to Louisiana Avenue.

Though most of the lines were dead, Sontoyo said, some lines — those farther from the 18-wheeler — were still live.

At least five poles were damaged — some snapped in two, others pulled at odd angles toward the 18-wheeler.

Sontoyo said all the poles had to be removed and replaced immediately in order to restore power to Ferriday, but that it would likely be several hours before that could happen.

“They’re taking those poles down now,” Sontoyo said. “It’s going to be a while.”