DURHAM — A September crash that killed two York County men and injured a third occurred when the driver of the pickup truck in which the men were traveling failed to stop at a stop sign, Maine State Police announced Thursday.

Based on evidence at the crash site, reconstruction, medical records and eyewitness reports, investigators determined that the driver – Brandon J. Harthorne, 24, of Cornish – failed to stop at a stop sign at the junction of Hallowell Road (Route 9) and Rabbit Road around 7:15 a.m. Sept. 21.

The 2003 Chevrolet pickup, which had been traveling east on Runaround Pond Road, entered the intersection and collided with a Volvo dump truck traveling south along Hallowell Road.

The force of the impact caused the dump truck owned by Larrabee Construction of Durham to rotate 180 degrees and tip onto its left side, said Maine Public Safety spokesman Steve McCausland in a statement. The pick-up “rotated violently” and caught fire, he said.

Harthorne was ejected through the driver’s door of the pick-up. Malakai X. Cawood, 21, of Limington, who was seated in the rear seat behind the front passenger, was also ejected from the vehicle. Both men died at the scene of blunt force trauma to the head.

The front passenger was Jeremy J. Reardon, 35, of Limington, who sustained what police described as “multiple and significant” injuries. He was taken by LifeFlight helicopter to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston. A hospital spokesman on Thursday said Reardon was no longer a patient there, but could provide no further information .

None of the three men were wearing seatbelts.

The operator of the dump truck – Clifton H. Larrabee, 42, of Durham – was wearing his seatbelt, but was transported to Maine Medical Center in Portland with serious injuries.

The pick-up was owned by Plowman Construction of Gorham. All three were on their way to a job site when the crash took place.

“Trooper Martin Royle’s investigation also determined that mechanical failure, road or climatic conditions, speed and the presence of intoxicants were not factors in the crash,” said McCausland. “The cause of the crash was attributed to human error.”

Harthorne was a 2011 graduate of Sacopee Valley High School in Cornish, according to his obituary.

Cawood enjoyed gaming, gardening, swimming and spending time with his friends and family. His obituary noted he was looking forward to the birth of his child in the next few months.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or [email protected].