LAFAYETTE, Ohio - A teenage couple who would have celebrated their one-year anniversary next month were killed after their car hit a power pole, bringing down live wires that hindered emergency workers at the scene.

The driver, Andrea Cheney, 16, died in Medical College of Ohio Hospitals, Toledo, about 13 hours after the 5 p.m. accident Sunday. Her passenger, Nathan Conkle, 19, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Emergency workers couldn't free the Harrod teenagers from the vehicle for nearly two hours until utility crews de-energized the fallen wires and removed the pole from the top of the car.

Rick Gard, a district manager for American Electric Power Co., said yesterday that a company supervisor arrived at the accident scene only five minutes after he was notified.

The supervisor then contacted another utility employee to come out and deactivate the wires, which were lying on the ground near the car. He said that took an additional hour.

Mr. Gard said the supervisor feared additional injuries unless the electricity was turned off properly.

“I talked to my supervisor, and he's still shook up about this. The first thing that came to his mind was safety to the public,” Mr. Gard said. “He didn't want to see another victim up there.”

Allen County sheriff's Deputy Michael Stechschulte said Miss Cheney was southbound on Swaney Road, just north of Lafayette, when she either failed to stop or slid through a stop sign at Sandusky Road.

Her car then collided with a vehicle driven by Tim Arnett, 34, of Alger, who was eastbound on Sandusky Road. The impact drove Miss Cheney's car into a nearby utility pole, part of which fell onto her vehicle.

Deputy Stechschulte said the wires didn't fall on the car, so emergency crews were able to enter the vehicle and begin treating the victims. Both died of traffic-related injuries, officials said.

Mr. Arnett and his two passengers, ages 11 and 12, were treated for injuries in St. Rita's Medical Center, Lima.

The deputy said Miss Cheney and the children in the other car were wearing seat belts. He said it was unknown whether Mr. Conkle and Mr. Arnett were wearing their belts.

Mr. Gard said the accident was unusual in that the impact caused the utility pole to break 15 feet from the ground, whereas most utility poles break at ground level. He said power in the 12,000-volt line was restored to customers later that evening.

Julie Conkle, Mr. Conkle's mother, said she believed her son and his girlfriend were heading toward her home when the accident occurred.

She said the two met at Allen-East High School last year and spent as much time together as possible. They attended church on Sunday morning, and she said Miss Cheney often stopped over to visit her son en route to high school each morning.

Mr. Conkle recently started working at an automotive parts manufacturing company in Lima, where he worked nights and overtime whenever possible.

“He was a leader. He had a very charismatic personality. And he was well-liked,” Mrs. Conkle said. “He was a great kid.”

In high school, Mr. Conkle had a lead role in a junior class play and also participated in choir.

Miss Cheney was a sophomore at the high school, where she played on the volleyball team and ran track last year, said Superintendent Michael Richards.

School was canceled yesterday because of icy roadways, Mr. Richards said. But he said grief counselors would be available for students at the 350-member high school today.

“We're a small school. Anytime anything happens like this, it will affect all of us,” he said. “Certainly we're preparing to deal with the students tomorrow when they come to school.”

Mrs. Conkle said visiting hours will be held for both youths from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. tomorrow at the Chiles & Sons Laman Funeral Home in Bluffton. The bodies will be shown at the same times but in different rooms, Mrs. Conkle said. “I think that was something the kids would have wanted.”

First Published January 9, 2013, 6:40 p.m.