A glaze of ice on River Road resulted in a four-car accident Sunday when a southbound motorist slid into the northbound lane near the intersection with Windham Center Road.
Two drivers involved in the accident were transported to Maine Medical Center, one of whom remains in critical condition.
Just before 3 p.m. on Jan. 15, Howard Edwards, 25, of Biddeford was heading southbound on River Road when his Ford Ranger pick-up truck skidded into the northbound lane.
An oncoming Hyundai SUV swerved to avoid hitting Edwards. A Ford truck following the SUV crashed almost head-on with the Ranger.
After swerving, the driver of the Hyundai – Roy Pelletier, 57, of Casco – slid into the icy southbound lane and collided with a Subaru driven by Marc Provencher, 25, of Portland.
Windham police, fire and rescue, along with Gorham rescue, responded to the scene of the two collisions.
While Pelletier and Provencher escaped with only minor injuries, Edwards and the driver of the F150 truck – Dean Hanscon, 33, of Gray – were rushed to the Maine Medical Center. Edwards, who suffered multiple injuries, is still in critical condition and Hanscon is recovering from a fractured leg.
Icy road conditions have been named as the primary cause of the accident, said Windham Sgt. David Thomas.
Windham Public Works trucks had been out sanding the roads that afternoon, he said. However, strong winds combined with “microbursts of snow” made for dangerous conditions on the open stretch of River Road.
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