Accident closes Route 11
By Kathy McCarty
Staff Writer
MASARDIS — Poor road conditions are being blamed for a log truck accident that occurred around noontime Dec. 2 on Route 11.
Photo courtesy of Matt Bell
A LOG TRUCK, owned by H.C. Haynes of Winn and driven by Cleveland Richardson of Patten, went off Route 11 in Masardis Monday, due to poor road conditions.
“I was called to cover it around 12:10 p.m. State police were out of range to handle it. The accident occurred on a sharp corner, about a half mile south of the Ashland line, past the railroad tracks,” said Cyr Martin, chief of the Ashland Police Department.
Martin said the driver had just loaded the trailer with logs at the Haines lot on the Scopan stretch and was heading south when he lost control on the snow-covered road.
“The road was slick at the time. The truck was driven by Cleveland Richardson, 56, of Patten. Richardson indicated the trailer started to slide and there was nothing he could do. It just rolled into the ditch, taking out some utility poles. He sustained minor injuries. The truck — a 2006 Sterling — was totaled,” said Martin. “The truck is owned by H.C. Haynes, of Winn.”
Martin said the road was closed intermittently as crews worked to load the logs to another truck, while utility workers addressed the downed lines and damaged poles.
Assisting Martin at the scene were Sgt. Jarad Carney of the APD, as well as crews from the Masardis and Ashland fire departments.
