The York County Sheriff’s Office has charged the driver of a box truck that struck an SUV in Waterboro early Thursday, seriously injuring an infant.
The crash occurred at the intersection of Route 202 and Straw Mill Brook Road.
Police said Ellen Kennedy, 37, of Sanford was traveling east on Main Street, also known as Route 202, in a 2004 Jeep Cherokee along with her 10-month-old baby, when she stopped to make a left turn onto Straw Mill Brook Road.
Behind her, a box truck driven by Rene Romero, 53, of Lynn, Massachusetts, struck the Jeep, seriously injuring the infant.
A LifeFlight of Maine helicopter took the child to Maine Medical Center in Portland for treatment. Kennedy suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene of the crash.
York County Sheriff William L. King Jr. said the child was secured in a car seat at the time of the crash, and the seat appeared to have been properly installed.
After police consulted with the District Attorney’s Office, Romero was arrested and charged with one count of aggravated driving to endanger, and will be arraigned Friday via video in Springvale District Court.
King said the charging decision was made in part because witnesses told police that the truck driver did not appear to make any effort to slow down or change course.
Bail has not yet been set.
King said Romero was driving a rented truck as a subcontracted delivery person, but it wasn’t clear Thursday where Romero was going, who he works for or what cargo he was carrying.
The crash is being reconstructed by the York County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from the Sanford Police Department. Main Street was closed for about seven hours while police investigated.
Matt Byrne can be contacted at 791-6303 or at:
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