FARMINGTON — A Strong woman was upgraded to serious condition this afternoon after being injured Sunday when the car she was a passenger in slammed into another car head-on.

Lori Richards, 52, was initially taken by ambulance to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington, according to investigating officer Bill Tanner of the Farmington Police Department. Tanner didn’t know the extent of Richards’ injuries, but described them as serious.

A Maine Medical Center spokesperson in Portland said today that Richards was listed in critical condition just before noon, and her condition was upgraded to serious later in the day.

The accident happened on Town Farm Road and was reported about 12:30 p.m., just as freezing rain made for hazardous road conditions.

“I even had a hard time getting to the scene,” Tanner said.

Driving north in a Hyundai Elantra was 15-year-old Annie Dexter, of Strong. Dexter was learning to drive with her mother, Richards, in the passenger seat.

As Dexter drove up a hill, she lost control of the car and swerved into an oncoming car coming down the hill, an Enterprise rental van, driven by Jason Rosenberg, 29, of Rhode Island. There were also two passengers in Rosenberg’s van who suffered minor injuries and were also taken to Franklin Memorial Hospital.

Everyone involved was wearing seatbelts and no charges were filed, Tanner said.

Dexter’s car was destroyed, and the van sustained about $3,000 in damages. Tanner said the road was closed to traffic for about two hours as the crash scene was cleared. Dexter and Rosenberg were not injured.

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