A freight truck containing a full load of groceries turned over in a ditch on Rte. 22 blocking both lanes of traffic in the last hour before dawn on April 21.
The Sysco Food Services truck was only superficially damaged and the driver was uninjured, according to Todd Boulanger, Sysco director of transportation. Of the total load of 696 cases of food, only five cases of eggs were lost, he said.
The truck went over at around 5 a.m. in the predawn darkness by Smiling Hill Farm. According to Boulanger, the driver had left Sysco, which is just up the road on Rte. 22, and was heading westward towards Waterboro and Limerick. Only about a mile from Sysco, the truck’s lights went out.
The driver attempted to turn around in a parking lot but got caught on a soft shoulder and pulled into a ditch. In the darkness, he couldn’t see the ditch, said Boulanger. The truck didn’t roll completely over onto its side, enabling a truck from Maietta Towing in Scarborough to bring it upright using cables.
Police from Westbrook and the state responded to the accident, blocking off both lanes of traffic on Rte. 22 for about an hour. State police from a commercial vehicle enforcement unit responded to determine if any weight, size, or mechanical problems contributed to the accident.
State police spokesman Steve McCausland said it’s normal procedure for the commercial vehicle enforcement unit to respond to commercial vehicle accidents. According to McCausland, the unit is the only one in the state devoted solely to commercial trucking. He said they respond to all truck accidents to help local police determine potential causes of the accident.
Boulanger said the police didn’t issue a ticket to the driver of the truck or find anything wrong with the truck other than the electrical problem affecting the lights. He said the driver was checked by emergency medical personnel, and he was not injured. Boulanger said the driver passed a requisite drug and alcohol screen immediately following the accident. The company will perform an accident review as part of normal procedure.
The truck was only superficially damaged because of the way it rolled into the ditch, said Boulanger. A supervisor drove the truck back to Sysco after the tow truck got it upright again.
“It was a really strange accident,” said Boulanger. “There’s usually a lot of damage.”
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