Brunswick, ME : Spate of crashes in the Midcoast over the weekend on Sunday, December 18th 2016

A Topsham man was arrested and charged with operating under the influence after he allegedly failed to yield to police cruisers at a crash scene on Interstate 295 early Sunday morning.

Shortly after 4 a.m. Sunday, Cumberland Police Department responded to I-295 in Yarmouth for police vehicles that had been struck by a passing motorist.

According to a Facebook post on the Cumberland Police Department page, officers from Yarmouth and Freeport were on scene at a prior motor vehicle collision when a northbound vehicle failed to yield to the cruisers’ blue emergency lights.

Pursuant to an investigation Cumberland police placed the driver of the vehicle, Connor Fitzsimmons, 27, of Topsham, under arrest and charged him with OUI.

Both cruisers were struck and damaged in the collision. Neither the officers were nor Fitzsimmons were seriously injured.

“Operating at emergency scenes on I-295 is a scary proposition in good weather,” the post states. “It is a nightmare during inclement weather. Please slow down, yield to emergency vehicles, and do not drive after consuming alcoholic beverages.”

Snowmobiler injured in collision with car

A snowmobiler was taken to Central Maine Medical Center Saturday morning after he collided with an oncoming car on Post Road in Bowdoinham late Saturday morning.

The incident was reported at 11:38 a.m. near the Recycling Barn. Frederick Snowdeal, 55, of Bowdoinham was taken by Topsham Rescue to CMMC with serious injuries that were not life threatening.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff ’s Deputy Mark McDonald said Snowdeal was reportedly traveling down the middle of the road on an Arctic Cat snowmobile when a Chevy Impala driven by Hannah Mecham, 19, of Bowdoinham, came around a corner traveling in the opposite direction.

McDonald said Mecham swerved to the right to avoid Snowdeal, who swerved to the left and the two met somewhere in the middle. Snowdeal was wearing a helmet and hit his head on the windshield of the car. According to rescue personnel, he was conscious when McDonald arrived on scene.

The airbags deployed in the car and the windshield broke but Mecham was not injured.

McDonald said Snowdeal almost made it to the trail in a field he was riding to when the crash occurred.

According to the Maine Department if Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, a registered snowmobile may only operate a distance of up to 300 yards on a public way to the extreme right in order to cross the public way as directly as possible. A person operating a snowmobile on a public or private way maintained for travel, must yield the right of way to all vehicular traffic.

Crash snarls Topsham traffic

A two vehicle crash backed up traffic on Route 196 in Topsham Friday evening and sent one driver to the hospital with a minor injury.

Topsham Police Sgt. Mark Gilliam said the crash was reported at 5:26 p.m. about a half mile past the White House Crossing Road. A 1994 Ford Ranger pickup truck driven by 53-year-old John Russo was struck from behind by a 1997 Jeep driven by a 17-year-old male from Topsham. Russo was taken to a Lewiston hospital with a minor head injury.

It appears the rear taillights of Russo’s vehicle weren’t operating at the time of the crash, which may be a contributing factor, Gilliam said.

Traffic was backed up because of the way the vehicles came to rest in the road. It was also difficult to get wreckers to the scene because they were busy towing and jump starting vehicles due to freezing temperatures.

No charges had been issued Friday night.

Source :
Spate of crashes in the Midcoast over the weekend