BOWDOINHAM — A Westbrook man is in critical condition being treated at Central Maine Medical Center after crashing the minivan he was driving on Interstate 295 Tuesday afternoon.

Police say Larry Huff, 62, was headed south when he started to steer into the passing lane, saw a car there at the last second and swerved back, said Trooper Chris Rogers. The van hit the shoulder and when Huff tried to correct its path, the van swerved across the highway into the left-hand guardrail, then bounced back to the other side of the road.

The collision with the guardrail peeled open the passenger door and the spinning motion of the vehicle catapulted Huff through the open door and onto the grass alongside the road. He was not wearing a seatbelt. His passenger, Haze McDougal, 31 of Portland, who was wearing a seatbelt, had a minor cut on the hand from flying glass, police said.

Huff was bleeding from the head though he was conscious when the helicopter landed on the highway to transport him, Rogers said.

The crash happened at 12:30 p.m. at mile 36. No other cars were involved.