A Three Rivers man crashed his vehicle, cutting power to people in the area, in an effort to avoid hitting a dog.

The collision happened around 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 25, near the intersection of Detroit Road and Barron Lake Road in Howard Township, according to the Cass County Sheriff’s Office.

The 36-year-old driver and his passenger were traveling eastbound on Detroit Road when a witness told deputies that a small dog ran into the road and The driver tried to avoid it.

He ran off the road and overturned, damaging a utility pole.

That resulted in the immediate area losing power until crews were able to restore it.

The two occupants of the vehicle went to the hospital with non life threatening injuries.

The incident remains under investigation.