OXFORD – David E. Adams, an Auburn charter commissioner and former city councilor, died Thursday, a day after he was injured in a head-on crash on Route 26 in Oxford.
Adams, 60, of 1089 Minot Ave., was driving north in his Ford pickup truck when it and a sport utility vehicle traveling south collided on Pigeon Hill at 6 p.m., Oxford police Sgt. Rickie Jack said.
Adams died at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston at 3:36 a.m. Thursday, the officer said. A medical examiner has determined the cause of death, but Jack said it will not be released until the accident investigation is finished.
Joyce Egge, 50, of Danbury, N.H., driver of the Ford SUV, and Faustina Chamberlain, 88, of West Baldwin, her passenger, remained at CMMC Thursday night. Egge suffered a broken left arm and ribs, and Chamberlain suffered a broken vertebra in her neck but is expected to make a full recovery, Jack said.
Both were listed in stable condition, a nursing supervisor said.
Jack said all three were trapped in their vehicles, which landed 426 feet apart after the crash. The speed limit at the site is 40 mph.
Word spread through Auburn on Thursday that Adams, father of former Auburn Assistant City Manager Mark Adams, had died.
“He was a super, super person,” said Auburn police Detective Chad Syphers of the longtime politician. “He’d do anything for you. He really cared about the city and he did his best to make sure people were taken care of.”
Adams, a retired field cost estimator with Central Maine Power Co., served on the Auburn City Council in the mid-1980s. In November, he was elected to the city Charter Commission. He also ran for a Maine House seat in November, losing to incumbent Tom Shields.
John Cleveland, former Auburn mayor and current member of the Charter Commission, was just learning about Adams’ death Thursday night.
“He was very community-minded,” Cleveland said. “He was very concerned about the people of Auburn. He was very concerned about people who might be at a disadvantage and he always tried to do what was best for the community.”
Adams lived in Auburn since 1971 and served on various public boards, including the Auburn Sewage Board and the state real estate licensing board. But those who knew him said it is Adams the person, more than Adams the politician, who will be missed.
“He was just a real good guy,” Sypher said.
“I’m sad that he’s gone,” said Cleveland. “We’ll miss him.”
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