BREWER, Maine — Maine State Police are investigating crashes involving 10 vehicles on Interstate 395 in Brewer on Monday.
Troopers from Troop I responded to I-395 westbound on the bridge in Brewer at 7:20 a.m. after a Toyota Tacoma reportedly lost control due to icy conditions, crashing in lane three. The truck was facing the wrong way and blocking traffic, Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss said in a Monday night release.
Within a few minutes three more crashes occurred in the area due to icy conditions, Moss said. One female driver was transported to Saint Joseph's Hospital with complaints of pain due to airbag deployment.
Interstate 395 was closed for approximately 30 minutes.
Maine Department of Transportation, Brewer Police Department, Brewer Fire Department, and Northern Field Troop assisted on the scene.
"While Troopers were on scene westbound, several vehicles began using a crossover east of the scene to go from I-395 westbound to I-395 eastbound. Due to the vehicles illegally using the crossover, eastbound traffic was forced to slow abruptly. This caused a 2-vehicle crash eastbound. There were no injuries due to the crash, but it did cause I-395 eastbound to be reduced to one lane for approximately 35 minutes," Moss said.
Brewer Fire and Maine DOT assisted troopers with the eastbound crash. The crossover violators continued on and were not there when the troopers arrived, according to the release.
State police would like to remind drivers that using crossovers is not permitted for any reason. They said it is illegal and highly dangerous to everyone driving on the interstate.
