September 5, 2012

Car hits man on lawn tractor, killing him

Kennebec Journal Staff

MOUNT VERNON — A local man died Tuesday night when a car hit him as he was driving a lawn tractor on Wings Mills Road.

click image to enlarge

MOUNT VERNON FATALITY: Mount Vernon firefighters congregate Tuesday afternoon at the scene of accident on the Wings Mills Road in Mount Vernon that claimed the life of a local man.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy

Manley Damren

Manley Damren, 76, died at the scene of the accident, which was reported at 5:16 p.m.

Damren, who owned Mount Nebo Orchards, was "within eyeshot" of his home at 339 Weeks Mill Road when he was hit by the car, according to Capt. Dan Davies of the Kennebec County Sheriff's Office.

"He had an orchard down the road, suggesting he could have been coming from that direction back to his house," Davies said Tuesday night.

Damren operated the apple orchard with his wife, Barbara, according to Kennebec Journal archives.

No charges have been filed and the Mount Vernon man driving the car, Charles Morse, 60, was not injured.

Police first received calls about the accident from a passerby, Davies said.

Deputy Mike Dutil of the sheriff's office responded as did members of the Mount Vernon Volunteer Fire Department, according to a sheriff's department release. Manley was found lying on the side of the road.

Police said Damren was riding his John Deere lawn tractor south on the southbound side Wings Mills Road.

Morse's 2002 Subaru Outback came up behind Damren and struck the rear of the tractor, casting Damren against the car and then onto the side of the road. The tractor was launched into the nearby woods.

It was raining lightly at the time and that section of the road is on a slight curve and knoll, Davies said.

Police are investigating and said Morse was taken to the hospital to give a blood sample to test for intoxicants, which is standard procedure. The accident is being investigated by the sheriff's office and Maine State Police.

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