A WGME photojournalist died Sunday night while covering a race at the Oxford Plains Speedway.
Witnesses saw John “Monty” Orrick, a longtime photojournalist and author, collapse in the speedway’s press box shortly after the conclusion of the Oxford 250 auto race.
Oxford police Chief Rickie Jack said Monday morning that it appears Orrick died of a cardiac event but that a review of his death is still ongoing.
After Orrick collapsed, other journalists in the press box tended to him until first responders at the track arrived and started CPR.
Jack said Orrick died before he could be taken to a hospital.
WGME news director Amanda Post said in a brief phone call Monday afternoon that the station is deferring comment to Orrick’s family. The family has declined to be interviewed.
WGME sports director Dave Eid posted a tribute to Orrick on Facebook, saying Monday that his colleague will be “deeply missed.”
“A very tough time for all of us at WGME. We unexpectedly lost a beautiful soul last night with the passing of Monty Orrick. I loved working with Monty or just talking baseball even though he was a Giants fan,” he wrote.
Eid also thanked reporters, Oxford Plains Speedway staff and first responders “who tried desperately to save his life.”
Owen Kingsley, a former anchor and reporter for WGME, said Orrick “was a very kind person” and, as a professional, “you couldn’t ask for a better co-worker.”
“A lot was asked of him and he always delivered,” Kingsley said. “He was someone who was very dedicated to the job. It was a real calling for him.”
In the year-and-a-half they worked together, Kingsley said, he often would “get lost in conversation” with Orrick, whether it was talking about family life, sports or Orrick’s hobbies, such as fishing.
“Monty was just a really kind, thoughtful person,” Kingsley said. “He always thought about other people and their perspective on things.”
Orrick, a California native who lived in Raymond, worked as a photojournalist for more than 25 years, including the past two for Portland-based WGME 13, according to his LinkedIn page. He previously worked for news station KATU in Portland, Oregon.
Orrick was an author of least two books, including “The Crater Lake Murders,” about the 1952 killings of two General Motors executives. Another book, “Feeding the Beast,” aims to help writers tell their stories with words, pictures and sound. Last year, Orrick gave talks about the Crater Lake book at the Thomas Memorial Library in Cape Elizabeth and the Scarborough Public Library.
Haley House, 29, of Lewiston, said she met Orrick at the Lewiston-Auburn Balloon Festival in 2024 and was excited to talk to him about his career as a photographer. She said he was a positive, outgoing man who went out of his way to talk to people in the community.
As someone who loves watching the news, House said, her “favorite thing about him was the huge love of his job.”
Staff Writer Morgan Womack contributed to this story.
