WINDSOR (AP) – Three people were killed Tuesday when their car drifted off the road, slammed into a utility pole and landed in a ditch, police said.

A car driven by Charles Bitar, 79, of Augusta, was headed west on state Route 17 when it went off the road while rounding a curve at the Baker Road intersection, the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Department said.

Bitar and two passengers were pronounced dead at the scene. The other victims were identified as Marie Kassetta, 53, of Saddle Brook, N.J., and her 76-year-old mother, Victoria Marnell of Haines City, Fla.

Bitar’s 77-year old wife, Julie, was airlifted to a Lewiston hospital and treated for minor injuries.

“It appears the operator just slowly drifted off the roadway and was unable to recover,” said Chief Deputy Randall Liberty.

The accident remains under investigation, but investigators said weather conditions were good at the time of the crash and it did not appear speed or alcohol were factors.

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Information from: Kennebec Journal, http://www.kjonline.com/

AP-ES-10-25-06 0849EDT