86-year-old George Vandenburgh of Portland, the driver of a wrong-way vehicle on the turnpike, hit a tractor-trailer, head on, and died on the scene.
The crash is under investigation.
From the Maine State Police:
On Friday, March 21, 2025, at approximately 6:00 am, the Bangor and Augusta Regional Communication Centers received multiple calls reporting a wrong-way driver on the Turnpike near mile marker 42 in Scarborough. Witnesses reported that the vehicle, a 2018 Ford Fusion, traveling northbound in the southbound lanes, subsequently exited the Turnpike onto Interstate 295. Additional reports indicated that the vehicle was later seen traveling through the I-295 tolls in South Portland. The wrong-way vehicle, operated by 86-year-old George Vandenburgh of Portland, ultimately collided head-on with a tractor trailer unit traveling southbound near Exit 4 on Interstate 295. The operator of the tractor trailer was transported to Maine Medical Center in Portland with non-life-threatening injuries. Vandenburgh was pronounced deceased at the scene. Both the northbound and southbound lanes were closed to traffic for several hours. Both lanes have since reopened.
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