A driver was hospitalized after a crash on Route 17 in Carlstadt early Saturday morning damaged a utility pole and scattered debris that led to a second crash, police said.

The crash happened around 4:45 a.m. near Biggie's Restaurant on Route 17 southbound.

According to Carlstadt police, a 2013 BMW sedan veered off the road, struck a utility pole and guardrail and then crashed into a retaining wall.

Officers removed the driver from the vehicle and began treating him for injuries. He was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center with facial injuries. An officer suffered minor cuts while helping remove the driver.

Debris from the damaged guardrail scattered across Route 17, where a second vehicle struck pieces of it. Police later located that vehicle near Meadowlands Diner and took a second crash report.

The crash also caused intermittent power outages. PSE&G was working to replace the damaged utility pole at the time of Saturday's police announcement.