Two people died Friday as a result of a six-vehicle accident that involved a tractor-trailer carrying a load of lumber at the intersection of Route 17 and Fitch Road in Washington.

The tractor-trailer rolled over into a ditch, spilling its load, while another burned and charred vehicle was in a field and a third was in a gully and could not be seen from the road.

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that two people died in the crash, but their identities were not released.

A Knox County sheriff’s dispatcher received a call about the accident at 4:47 p.m.

As darkness fell, emergency vehicles, including two LifeFlight helicopters, had left the scene. Investigators, including accident reconstructionists, remained at the crash. Part of Route 17 near the crash site was expected to be closed for several hours.

Dara Taylor, who lives near the crash site, said she saw two helicopters land in a field off Fitch Road and a number of ambulances heading toward the scene. She said the intersection historically has been the scene of a lot of accidents.

The responding agencies included Knox and Waldo counties’ sheriff’s deputies; Maine State Police; Maine State Police Commercial Enforcement; fire departments from Washington, Somerville, Jefferson and Whitefield; and Union, Waldoboro and Sterling ambulances.


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