WELLS — A driver was cited for making an unsafe lane change after an accident Monday on the Maine Turnpike that set a car ablaze and caused several injuries.

Traffic in both directions on the turnpike near mile marker 20 was delayed for a couple of hours because of the crash, which was reported at 3 p.m., said state Trooper Anthony Keim.

An SUV driven by Henry Priebe, 56, of Oxford was going north when it changed lanes, hitting a pickup truck driven by Michael Starbird, 35, of Pittsfield, Keim said. The impact sent Starbird’s vehicle through a median-strip crossover and into the southbound lanes, where it caught fire.

Starbird and a passenger, Amy McPherson, 35, of Pittsfield escaped the vehicle, along with a 7-year-old boy. Starbird and McPherson were taken to Maine Medical Center in Portland with what appeared to be minor injuries.

Priebe and two teenage passengers in his SUV were not injured, but Priebe was issued a summons — similar to a speeding ticket — for making an unsafe lane change, Keim said.

The collision led to two other accidents involving drivers who Keim said were “rubbernecking.”

One driver had to be extricated from his car and several people were taken to hospitals, but no serious injuries were reported.

Staff Writer Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at: dhoey@pressherald.com