UPDATE: Firefighter Helps Rescue His Brother in Branford Hill Accident

Fire and emergency crews from Branford and New Haven responded to a single-vehicle accident just before noon today when a truck slammed into a utility pole near 845 W. Main Street, near Branford Hill, tearing the pole in half.

The driver, 46-year-old Kevin Cudgma, is recovering at an area hospital. His brother John was among the firefighters involved in a marathon hour-plus rescue.

A fire department spokesperson told Branford patch Cudgma became tangled in the wreckage of the truck. He was conscious and able to communicate as crews struggled to free him, but fire officials describe the rescue, which took longer than an hour, as "a difficult extrication."

The accident and rescue snarled traffic on West Main for more than three hours. Police say mechanical failure may have been a cause for the crash.