FARMINGTON – No one was injured in a crash on Center Bridge Wednesday afternoon, with firefighters using extraction tools to free a Phillips resident from a damaged sedan.
The crash was reported before 4 p.m. Wednesday, after a tractor trailer truck collided with the sedan on Center Bridge. According to Farmington Police Department Officer Jesse Clement, the crash occurred after a northbound 2019 Western Star truck that was crossing the bridge in the left-hand lane switched to the right-hand lane. The truck’s operator did not see a black 2009 Subaru Impreza that was behind the cab in that lane and, upon changing lanes, the truck pushed the smaller car up onto the guardrail.
The Western Star was operated by Martin Perreault, 44 of Saint-Georges, Quebec. The truck was registered to Trans Copeaux, a Canadian company. The Subaru Impreza was operated by Paul Bubier, 77 of Phillips, with wife Marie Bubier, 77 of Phillips, in the passenger’s seat.
No injuries resulted from the crash, Clement said. The occupants of the Impreza were initially trapped in the vehicle, forcing Farmington Fire Rescue to lash the vehicle to the guardrail with ratchet straps to prevent it from rolling over. A door was then removed with the Jaws of Life cutting tool to allow access.
Traffic was reduced to a single lane across Center Bridge for less than an hour while emergency personnel worked on the sedan. In addition to Farmington police and Farmington Fire Rescue, NorthStar EMS was at the scene until the Bubiers were extracted from the sedan and found to be okay.
No charges are anticipated as a result of the crash, Clement said.
I wondered when this might happen. I have been trapped twice by Harrt trucks who have gotten to MacDonalds
traveling in the left lane and continued toward Abbott Hill pushing me up onto the embankment just past Hippach Field. It is a very scary situation.
I’m sorry this accident happened, but we benefit from having a good EMS service here in Farmington.
I feel bad for all those involved here, I see no real fault on either driver but I think the accident was avoidable if drivers could realize tractor trailer drivers have that blind spot where they cannot see someone behind them and that many times they have to make short radius turns and allow for it. Most all those folks who drive for a living are professional and pride themselves with their safety record but if you get pinched in their blind spot you are apt to get squished. Hopefully my post will not offend but if it does and manages to prevent one single accident like this it is worthwhile.
Robin —– So what did the couple from Phillips do wrong? Based on the DB report, they seemed to be driving responsibly in their own lane I’m ALL about people driving carefully and responsibly. Seems to me that the trucker might need some equipment on his truck that might help HIM have a better clue in terms of the vehicles around him if he can’t read his mirrors, etc. Just very glad there was no serious injury to anyone.
To Marlene:…. Most truckers that have to turn right will be in the left lane or in the middle but usually they will make sure their blinker is on very early in hopes that drivers in the right lane will see it and realize that even though the truck is in the left lane, it is turning right. Most trucks these days have signs on the back that say “This truck makes wide right turns” or a sign that shows where the blind spot is on the right side…
A trucker can only do so much to bring awareness to the way they move. I understand that a lot of people don’t get how a tractor trailer moves/turns but I’m hoping with this post that people will pay attention more to tractor trailers and what they are doing (as I do) because they can only do so much to prevent these exact type of situations from happening.
left turn lane must turn left ?
Since the collision occurred over 250 feet from the turn, I don’t think the wide right turn was in play, especially since the curve and road width seem adequate for a semi to turn safely from the right lane. Looks more like the trucker was late in realizing he needed to switch lanes. If he signaled (I’ve not heard yay or nay), the Subaru driver could’ve braked, or honked.
Wow, that must have been scary for the Bubiers. Seems they were just driving with the right of way and normal flow of the two lanes when the truck switched lanes on them. If anyone was at fault it’s the trucker for not having adequate mirrors or not fully looking to clear the visibility of the right lane before deciding to switch. I mean ultimately that’s part of the responsibility of a commercial trucking business not a small car driving in a lane across a bridge. If there was adequate indication that he was switching lanes and a car ignored them and tried to advance then I could see duel responsibility but the truck driver could have slowed down to safely switch when they passed. It stinks all around but that’s the case as these detail can tell since the subaru driver was in the proper lane and therefore had the right of way. I’ve been forced to relinquish the right of way by people making last minute realizations they are in the wrong lane in both directions crossing the bridge after the light and especially where the rt 4 left lane ends at Front Street and the right lane has the right of way to continue strait. The only reason I haven’t been run of the road is becasue I’ve come not to trust anyone driving next to me to turn at front street. Happens at least once a week but then again there’s only one little sign indicating the lane ends and that’s between the lights back in the intersection. Terrible design but locals know to watch out. Glad the elderly couple was not hurt or pushed over the rails.
I do believe that truck drivers are among the most distracted drivers on the road and should be held more responsible for the safety of other drivers. Pay better attention to changing lanes and if there is any doubt DON’T DO IT, just a few more feet will tell them if someone is in the lane they are planning on moving to. I frequently take the bus and we are almost eye level with truck drivers and can see they are ‘plugged in’ eating and drinking and usually on their phone or texting. Everyone is responsible for everyone else on the road and the driving rules are there for a reason
Tom, at 25mph you travel 250 feet in less than 7 second. I’m not saying this wasn’t due to driver inattention but 7 seconds goes by pretty quickly when you’re behind the wheel.