WILTON — A Farmington man was killed Thursday afternoon when police say his car crossed the centerline on Route 2 and collided with a tractor-trailer, then caromed into a pickup truck.

Daniel Jackson, 66, was found dead at the scene, according to a Wilton Police Department report.

Jackson was driving a silver four-door Chevrolet sedan.

The report states that Jackson’s car collided with a 2008 Kenworth tractor-trailer truck driven by Nicholas Steven, 25, of Corinth, in the eastbound lane.

A 2000 Chevrolet Z71 pickup truck driven by Edward Towers, 44, of Dixfield, which was traveling a short distance behind Jackson’s car, then collided with the car, the report states.

Passengers in the pickup truck were A. Scotty Coutere, 22, of Jay, Jessica Towers, 17, of Dixfield, Tausha Plante, 34, of Rumford, and Dustin Towers, 21, of Dixfield.

The report states that NorthStar Ambulance crews treated three of Edward Towers’ passengers on-scene, but the four refused to be taken to a hospital.

Blood kits were collected from all drivers according to Maine law.

Wilton police and emergency responders were notified of the accident by Franklin County dispatchers at 2:15 p.m.

The accident scene was between Morrison Hill and East Dixfield village in a passing-zone straightaway where the speed limit is 55 mph.

Extensive debris from Jackson’s mangled car and the B.D.S. Waste Disposal Inc. tractor-trailer from Corinna littered both lanes.

The vehicles and leaking diesel fuel from the tractor-trailer forced a miles-long detour for Route 2 traffic through Canton and Jay after police and Wilton, Dixfield and East Dixfield firefighters closed the road.

Based on evidence at the scene, it appeared that Jackson’s car collided with the tractor-trailer driver’s-side fuel tank and the trailer’s front dual wheels.

Diesel fuel streamed out of the ruptured tank onto the highway.

Franklin County Emergency Management Agency Director Tim Hardy said the tractor-trailer’s fuel tank didn’t explode when the sedan collided with it, because it was diesel fuel and not gasoline.

“It’s diesel, so its flash-point isn’t as high as gasoline,” Hardy said.

The force of the collision ripped the tractor-trailer’s drive-shaft off and threw dashboard parts from the car into the westbound lane where what was left of the car came to rest.

The black Chevrolet Z71 pickup truck came to rest in grass off the westbound lane. Its hood was crumpled up, the driver’s side doors were dented and both airbags went off.

Skid marks from the tractor-trailer start at the point of impact in the eastbound lane and veer into its adjacent breakdown lane then back into the eastbound lane, traveling several hundred feet down the road before Steven could stop the severely-damaged rig.

Drivers who happened on the accident were parked in the emergency lanes on both sides of the two-lane road, many with stunned looks on their faces.

Two NorthStar Ambulance crews tended to the injured passengers as Wilton and East Dixfield firefighters used white hazardous-material pads to soak up the diesel fuel.

Wilton police are continuing to investigate the accident.

The Maine State Police conducted an accident reconstruction and state police commercial motor vehicle enforcement officers arrived to assist with the investigation.

Also assisting were Dixfield police; Dixfield, Wilton and Farmington firefighters; and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

tkarkos@sunjournal.com

The driver of this Chevy sedan was killed on Thursday afternoon after colliding with the fuel tank and dual tires of a west-bound Kenworth B.D.S. Waste Disposal Inc. tractor-trailer on Route 2 in Wilton just west of East Dixfield village. A Chevy Z71 pickup truck was also involved in the accident that shut down Route 2 for hours.

Emergency personnel wait for police to arrive on Thursday afternoon on Route 2 in Wilton beside a Chevy sedan that struck a tractor-trailer truck, killing the sedan driver. A Chevy Z71 pickup was also involved in the accident that shut down Route 2 just west of East Dixfield village, forcing traffic to detour for many miles to Canton and Jay.

Wilton fire chief Sonny Dunham, center, shouts for a firefighter to bring hazardous materials equipment to soak up diesel fuel streaming from the ruptured fuel tank of the Kenworth tractor-trailer truck following a fatal accident on Thursday afternoon on Route 2 in Wilton just west of East Dixfield village.

Diesel fuel streams out of a ruptured fuel tank Thursday afternoon on this B. D. S. Waste Disposal Inc. Kenworth tractor-trailer out of Corinna, after a Chevy sedan collided with the fuel tank and front dual wheels of the trailer on Route 2 in Wilton.