AUBURN – A man suffered injuries Sunday night when his Chevrolet pickup struck a utility pole on Route 11 near the Minot town line.

The road was closed for about an hour while rescuers pulled the man from his truck and Central Maine Power Co. workers cleared away the pole and guide wires.

The unidentified man suffered only minor injuries, said police.

He was talking with paramedics and lifting his head as he was wheeled from the crash site.

The accident happened around 9 p.m. The man appeared to have been driving westbound when he drove into the shoulder and hit the pole, striking it so hard that it broke off entirely.

The truck then spun around and landed in a ditch, about 15 feet from the road.