MADISON — A motor vehicle defect may have been the cause of an accident Tuesday morning on U.S. Route 201 in Madison that claimed the life of a Solon woman, police said.
Amy Bowman, 49, of Solon, was driving a 1996 Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle southbound on U.S. 201, also called Lakewood Road, when she lost control, swerving to the left and into the path of a heavy, flatbed tow truck near the Skowhegan town line, according to Madison Police Chief Barry Moores.
Moores said the SUV might have lost its left rear wheel, causing the vehicle to turn sharply into the path of the northbound truck. Bowman — a 1984 graduate of Skowhegan Area High School, according to her Facebook page — was dead at the scene.
The Ford SUV came to rest wedged with its front end wrapped around a small maple tree, and a branch from the tree landed on the vehicle’s hood. The rear passenger side of the vehicle was crushed.
The accident happened around 11 a.m. near 101 Lakewood Road in Madison about a mile from the Skowhegan town line. The crash left debris over much of the road. The SUV appeared to have been broadsided by the Dodge Ram 5500 flatbed truck owned by Chuck’s Auto Recovery and Towing of Skowhegan.
The truck had heavy front-end damage. Moores estimated the truck had $8,000 to $10,000 worth of damage. The driver, Kenneth Ash, 39, of Skowhegan, was not injured.
The northbound lane of U.S. 201 was closed as police, fire and rescue and Maine Department of Transportation workers cleaned up the roadway.
Madison and Skowhegan police and firefighters responded to the accident, as did Maine State Police and a deputy from the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department.
The Ford Explorer was covered with tarpaulins as authorities awaited the arrival of a local funeral director.
Moores said deputies from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Department are mapping the accident as part of the investigation. Maine State Police and the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department are collaborating on accident reconstruction.
The investigation will include routine blood-alcohol tests done in every fatal accident and will attempt to determine whether speed or other factors played a role in the crash. Results of the investigation are still pending, Moores said.
Doug Harlow — 612-2367
Twitter: @Doug_Harlow
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