WINSLOW — One man was taken by ambulance to the hospital Friday with injuries that were not considered life-threatening after the sport utility vehicle he was driving slammed into the rear of a parked flatbed truck just after 1 p.m. on Augusta Road, according to police.

A Chevrolet Equinox SUV ran into the rear of a flatbed truck on Augusta Road in Winslow on Friday in what police speculated might be a case of inattentive driving. Morning Sentinel photo by Michael G. Seamans

Winslow police Capt. Haley Fleming, who was at the scene, said the truck, driven by Russell Gaghan, 51, had just made a delivery to a business on Augusta Road, which is U.S. Route 201, and was in the cab of the truck parked on the west side of the road, facing south, when the SUV, driven by Nicholas Starkey, 33,  struck the left rear of the truck.

“The investigation probably will go in the direction of distracted driving,” Fleming said at the scene.

He said Winslow firefighters extricated Starkey from the SUV. Gaghan was not injured in the crash, Haley said later Friday in a press release.

Winslow police Officer John Veilleux is investigating whether the cause of the crash was driving while distracted, according to Haley. Speed and intoxicants are not believed to be factors in the crash, he said.

The State Police Commercial Vehicle Unit helped Winslow police by conducting a roadside vehicle inspection of the truck, according to Haley.

The speed limit on that section of road, about a half-mile from the Vassalboro town line and about 4 miles from Waterville, is 50 mph.

The SUV is a Chevrolet Equinox. The truck’s door bears the name Applicators Sales & Service Inc.

The Equinox’s windshield, passenger doors and roof were crunched in and the airbags had deployed. The SUV appeared to be destroyed.

Devin Giguere, 40, lives at the spot where the crash occurred and said she ran out of her house after she heard a bang, literally dropping everything and leaving the refrigerator door open.

A Chevrolet SUV remains under the flatbed of a delivery truck it rear-ended on Augusta Road in Winslow on Friday. Morning Sentinel photo by Michael G. Seamans

“He was in his car — poor guy,” Giguere said of the Equinox operator. “Oh, what a mess.”

She said the driver, a man who appeared to be in his 30s or 40s, was conscious and she advised him not to move.

“I told him to stay in his car,” she said.

Giguere’s husband owns Central Maine Siding and the truck driver had just delivered materials to the business, she said.

A nurse who came upon the crash scene got out to help the Equinox driver, according to Giguere.

The crash occurred just south of the business Fastenal. Winslow and Vassalboro firefighters, as well as Delta Ambulance, worked at the scene.

Both vehicles were towed from the scene.

« Previous

Next »

Related Stories