Four vehicles crashed on Interstate 95 in Bangor on Tuesday morning while an abandoned car was removed from the road.
A state trooper found a vehicle with a flat tire abandoned on the right side of I-95, near mile marker 184, just before the Kenduskeag Stream overpass about 8:53 a.m., according to Shannon Moss, a spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety.
The trooper requested a tow truck to remove the vehicle because it posed a hazard due to heavy traffic on a stretch of interstate with several exits during the morning commute, Moss said in a Tuesday afternoon email.
While the vehicle was being removed, a box truck crashed into the center concrete median before pulling to the right and stopping. A short time after that, three vehicles were involved in a second crash in the passing lane, all of which became disabled there, according to Moss.
That crash resulted in minor injuries.
The passing lane was closed while crews removed the vehicles.
The trooper soon identified the vehicle’s owner, who reported that his daughter had left the vehicle on the roadside but did not call police or a tow truck, according to Moss.
As a result, the driver, 26-year-old Caitlin Hillery of Glenburn, was charged with abandoning a motor vehicle on a public way, which carries a $325 fine, Moss said.
“The Maine State Police reminds all motorists to exit the interstate if possible, and if they must pull over, to pull over in a safe location and notify the police, to make proper arrangements,” Moss wrote.
