The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office hopes to download information from the data recorders of two vehicles involved in a reported road rage collision Monday after which one of the cars crashed through the ice on the Crooked River in Casco.
The driver of that car remained at Bridgton Hospital on Tuesday for treatment of hypothermia and injuries not believed to be life-threatening, police said.
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Investigators refused to release the names of the people in the crash, citing a criminal investigation that could lead to charges. They did release some other details about the incident.
Dispatchers received a report that a red pickup truck registered in Maine and a silver sport utility vehicle with New Hampshire license plates were driving erratically near the Casco-Naples town line at about 1 p.m.
Sheriff’s Capt. Don Goulet said Tuesday that the initial 911 call, which reported the incident as road rage, came from one of the passengers in the SUV. However, he said the version of events given by the people in that car was markedly different from the one given by the driver of the pickup truck involved.
“One of the reasons why I can’t release the names is because if it’s an intentional act, which is how we’re looking at it, then it’s a crime,” Goulet said. “There are conflicting stories on both sides. There was a precipitating event. In terms of who was the precipitator … that is one of the things we’re trying to determine.”
Alcohol or drugs were not factors in the crash and the people in the vehicles did not know one another, Goulet said. None of the people involved had extensive histories with police, he said.
A security video obtained by WCSH6-TV shows the two vehicles moments before the crash. They appear to be traveling side by side even though Route 302 in that area is only one lane in each direction. A full breakdown lane runs beside the travel lane, but tapers off quickly and disappears as the road crosses the bridge over the Crooked River.
“It is fair to say both vehicles made contact with each other,” Goulet said, although he would not elaborate.
The SUV crossed the eastbound travel lane, hit the snow built up against the bridge guardrail and went airborne, landing on the frozen river below, Goulet said.
The car landed almost upright and broke through the ice and sank, he said.
The three occupants were able to get out and swim to shore. All three were taken to Bridgton Hospital for treatment of minor injuries and hypothermia.
The driver of the pickup, who was not injured, stayed at the scene and spoke with detectives.
Investigators continue to interview witnesses, and asked anyone who saw the vehicles before or at the time of the crash to contact the sheriff’s office at 774-1444.
Route 302 was shut down and did not reopen until about 6 p.m. Monday, after the SUV was pulled out of the river by a wrecker, police said.
Both vehicles were towed from the scene and have been seized by police. Investigators will conduct vehicle autopsies as well as an accident reconstruction. They also will download information from the event data recorders of the two vehicles. The devices record the final few seconds before a crash, including how fast a vehicle was going, and whether it was being turned or the brakes were being applied.
Goulet said the sheriff’s office will present the results of its investigation to the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office to determine whether charges are appropriate.
David Hench can be contacted at 791-6327 or at:
Twitter: Mainehenchman
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