WILTON – A North Jay woman died instantly and a New Sharon woman was critically injured after their two vehicles collided Thursday morning on Routes 2 and 4.
Two teenage girls were also injured in the accident near Dexter Supply.
Barbara Hinkley, 59, of North Jay, was heading from Farmington toward Wilton when her PT Cruiser was struck by a pickup truck driven by Anna Mae D. Searles, 51, of New Sharon, said Wilton police officer Terry Warren. Searles had lost control of her truck on the icy road and crossed into the opposite lane, Warren said.
Hinkley, who recently retired as a SAD 9 bus driver, was killed instantly in the 7:50 a.m. accident, Warren said.
Farmington firefighters removed Searles from her Nissan Titan, Warren said. That town’s firefighters were first on the scene because they had been called to several nearby accidents.
Searles was flown by medical helicopter to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, where she was listed in critical condition Thursday afternoon, said a hospital spokeswoman.
Searles, who had just dropped off her husband at work in Wilton, was taking her daughter and another teenager to school in Farmington, Warren said.
Her passengers, daughter Crystal Searles, 15, and Crystal Wright, 17, both of New Sharon, were taken by a private vehicle to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington, where they were treated and released, Warren said.
Warren said the road had started to glaze over and became extremely icy about 20 minutes before the fatal accident occurred. Sand trucks had been called out but hadn’t reached that area yet, he said.
A German shepherd in Searles’ truck ran off after the accident but was found several hours later by Wilton firefighters who had been looking for it. The dog was uninjured and was returned to the family, Warren said.
Wilton firefighters needed to extricate Hinkley’s body from her vehicle, he said.
Franklin County sheriff’s deputies, Farmington police, Maine State Police and Wilton police, along with Wilton firefighters, helped to reroute traffic to Route 133 and assisted at the scene.
About a mile of the highway was closed for three hours, Warren said.
Maine state Troopers James Wright and Darren Foster reconstructed the accident. Franklin County Assistant District Attorney James Andrews also went to the scene to review the accident.
Both vehicles were impounded to be checked, Warren said.
“Speed and alcohol were not factors,” he said. “The cause of the accident appears to be slippery roads. It is still under investigation.”
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