PORTLAND, Maine — A utility truck went off Tukey's Bridge into the ocean around 10 a.m. Wednesday morning.
The truck went through a guardrail on I-295, off the bridge, airborne over a walking path, and landed vertically in a shallow portion of Casco Bay below, the Portland Fire Department said in a release.
Maine State Police said in a news release the truck fell approximately 45 feet.
The truck was reportedly traveling in the leftmost lane when its 51-year-old driver from Lakeland, Florida, attempted to merge into the right lane. At the same time, a vehicle traveling in the rightmost lane began merging, state police said. The driver attempted to avoid the car and merge back into the leftmost lane, "but due to another vehicle coming up from behind, he overcorrected and lost control of the truck," according to state police.
The truck then crossed all lanes of traffic, broke through the guardrail, and went over the embankment, where it fell and came to a stop on its passenger side on top of a paved path submerged in water, police said.
State police said the roadway was wet at the time of the incident and was likely a factor in the crash.
"Me and my foremen were down here watching the floodwaters over the trail and all of a sudden we had a loud noise," Curtis Trimmer, a Portland Water District worker who witnessed the crash, said. "The truck came flying over the railing, kind of did a nosedive onto the trail and ended up in the water. After that we just rushed down to make sure those guys were ok."
Three people were in the truck at the time and were taken to Maine Medical Center with injuries not considered life-threatening, according to the fire department. All vehicle occupants were able to get out of the truck.
“My first thought was, ‘I hope those guys in there or whoever’s in there isn’t dead,’” Trimmer said. “I ran down and got in the water and helped pull them out, made sure they’d get out all set."
There was a significant language barrier with the people who were involved in the crash, making it difficult for first responders to learn more about what happened," Portland Deputy Fire Chief Chad Johnston said. When first responders arrived, Johnston said the three men were standing on the Back Cove Trail.
When asked if he thought the men were lucky to be alive, Johnston said, “Oh, absolutely. No question in my mind. Thank you to the civilians that were on scene that helped get them out, and then our crews were able to swiftly get them to the hospital.”
The image below shows the spot on the bridge where the truck went through the guardrail. Maine Department of Transportation spokesperson Paul Merrill said Maine DOT crews planned to repair the section of guardrail Wednesday night.
Johnston said Maine State Police are handling the investigation and cleanup, and the United States Coast Guard is handling the fuel leak in the water. Johnston estimated about 50 gallons of fuel went into the ocean.
Tow trucks drove the damaged truck away from the scene around 4 p.m.
Maine State Police said they were assisted by the Portland Police and Fire Departments, Maine Department of Transportation, Maine Department of Environmental Protection, Coast Guard, and National Wrecker Service.
