HAMLIN, Maine — Drifting snow in the roadway caused icy conditions on Route 1A that police say contributed to a fatal accident in this tiny northern Aroostook County border community Tuesday night.
The victim, a 63-year-old Limestone woman was driving her 2008 Chevrolet Impala north at about 6 p.m. when the vehicle crossed the centerline and collided with an oncoming pickup truck, according to a press release Aroostook County Sheriff Shawn Gillen issued Wednesday morning.
Gillen indicate that the woman, whose name is not being released pending notification of family members, died at the scene.
The collision caused the 2008 Dodge Ram pickup truck driven by Ethan Leblanc, 27, of Hamlin to go off the roadway, roll over, and land on its roof, according to Deputy Sgt. Matt Cummings, who investigated the accident. Members of the Van Buren Ambulance Service transported Leblanc and his 5-year-old passenger by ambulance to Cary Medical Center to be treated for injuries that Cummings reported were not life threatening.
“Drifting snow in the roadway caused icy road conditions at the time of the crash and is likely the contributing factor,” Gillen stated in the release.
Officials temporarily shut down Route 1A, also known as Hamlin Road, for about four hours Tuesday night while they investigated and cleared the roadway.
The village of about 200 people is located just southeast of Van Buren where a U.S. point of entry is manned for the border crossing to Grand Falls, New Brunswick.
Cummings was assisted at the scene by members of the Van Buren Fire Department, U.S. Border Patrol, and a Maine State Police accident reconstructionist.
The crash remains under investigation and further information will be released once it becomes available, according to Gillen.
