RUMFORD — One child was killed and three people were injured Saturday afternoon when two cars collided on Route 2, according to police.
The Oxford County Regional Communications Center received a 911 call at 3:13 p.m. Saturday reporting a two-vehicle, high-speed collision near 1125 U.S. Route 2 in Rumford, about a mile west of the McDonald’s restaurant, according to a post on the Rumford Police Department’s Facebook page.
A preliminary investigation indicated Matthew Kellogg, 42, of Hopedale, Massachusetts, was traveling eastbound on U.S. Route 2 in his 2016 Subaru Impreza when he collided with a westbound 2005 Volvo S80 sedan operated by F. Michael Piveronas of Rumford.
Kellogg was driving with his two sons, ages 8 and 5, and Piveronas had no passengers, according to the post.
The Rumford Police and Fire departments and MedCare Ambulance were dispatched to the scene, where a game warden and a nurse were already performing lifesaving measures on the unresponsive 8-year-old boy.
Emergency workers discovered all four individuals involved in the crash had suffered life-threatening injuries, and transported them by Mexico and Bethel ambulances to Rumford Hospital at 420 Franklin St., according to the post.
The 8-year-old boy died at the hospital due to his injuries, and the 5-year-old was later taken to a Portland hospital for further emergency treatment.
Kellogg was expected to be taken to a Lewiston hospital Saturday evening.
Local and state police, firefighters and public works crews responded to the crash.
Specialists from the Maine State Police, Oxford County Sheriff’s Office and Androscoggin County Sheriff’s, and a representative from the Oxford County District Attorney’s Office, were called in to assist with the crash reconstruction investigation.
Alcohol was suspected Sunday as a contributing factor in the crash, but it was not clear if charges are likely, Rumford police Chief Tony Milligan said.
“It’s too early to say, as the investigation, lead by the Rumford police and the district attorney’s office, is currently underway,” Milligan said. “If criminal charges are warranted, we will release that information at the appropriate time when the investigation is concluded.”
Route 2 was closed to traffic, which was rerouted. It reopened at about 6:20 p.m. Saturday.
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