Two injured in separate crashes on Spaulding that occurred within seconds

Scene of Monday's crash on the Spaulding Turnpike in Rochester. (NHSP photo)

ROCHESTER - Two crashes that occurred within seconds shut down the Spaulding Turnpike Monday afternoon and left several motorists injured.

The first accident happened in the vicinity of mile marker 15.6 around 2:15 p.m., where it was determined that two separate crashes had taken place affecting both the southbound lanes and northbound lanes of the highway, according to a New Hampshire Dept. of Safety press release sent out on Tuesday.

A preliminary investigation revealed that a 2022 Freightliner flatbed wrecker, operated by Dustin Kay, 41, of Dover, had been traveling along Route 16 South when, for reasons that remain under investigation, he lost control of the wrecker.

The wrecker then went off the left shoulder of the highway, veered into the center median, and impacted the guardrail that is a divider between the southbound and northbound lanes of Route 16. After causing significant damage to the guardrail, the wrecker traveled in a southeasterly direction across the travel lanes of Route 16 North and entered a wooded area adjacent to the highway, eventually coming to rest after hitting several trees.

In the immediate aftermath of the initial crash, traffic slowed abruptly on both sides of the highway, leading to another crash in the southbound lanes when a 2015 Ford Edge being operated by Georgia Miller, 54, of Dover, struck the rear of a 2022 Ford Edge being operated by Charlotte Cody, 74, of Rochester. Following this secondary crash, both involved vehicles came to rest within the travel portion of Route 16 South.

Due to the initial crash, Troopers facilitated a closure of the right travel lane of Route 16 North, allowing traffic to flow using the left lane of the highway. Because the vehicles involved in the secondary crash and debris spanned across both travel lanes of Route 16 South, Troopers immediately facilitated a closure of all travel lanes of Route 16 South in the immediate area of the crash scene to allow for treatment of the injured by emergency personnel and investigation of the crash scene by Troopers.

As a result of the initial crash, the operator of the wrecker, Kay, was transported to a local area hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. As a result of the secondary crash, the operator of the Ford Edge, Miller, was transported to a local area hospital for treatment of minor injuries. Cody and a passenger in her vehicle were uninjured.

While Troopers investigated the scene and emergency personnel worked to facilitate the removal of the involved vehicles along with the associated debris, the right travel lane of Route 16 North was closed for about two hours. In addition, all travel lanes of Route 16 South remained closed in the immediate area of the secondary crash for around 45 minutes after which Troopers were able to allow traffic to flow through the right lane of travel. However, the left lane of Route 16 South remained closed for an additional hour to allow for mitigation of guardrail damage.

Multiple other agencies assisted at the scene of the crash to include the Rochester Fire Department, Frisbie Memorial Hospital Emergency Medical Services, the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, Dover Paint & Varnish, Rochester Truck, and Eddie B's Towing & Recovery.
Based upon the initial investigation, Kay was charged with a violation-level offense of Negligent Driving and several other motor vehicle violations.
All aspects of this crash remain under further investigation by Trooper Daniel Bourque and Trooper John Harris of New Hampshire State Police Troop A Barracks. Anyone with information pertaining to this crash is asked to contact Trooper Bourque at Daniel.J.Bourque@dos.nh.gov or Trooper Harris at John.M.Harris@dos.nh.gov.