One driver is dead and another is critically injured after a multi-vehicle accident near Comber that left a transport truck in flames and a hydro pole heavily damaged on Wednesday morning.
The collision occurred around 8:15 a.m. on Highway 77 at Lakeshore Road 310, just south of Comber.
Essex EMS, Lakeshore OPP, and the Town of Lakeshore’s fire department responded to the scene.
The vehicles involved were a tractor-trailer and a white four-door hybrid SUV.
It’s not yet clear how the accident unfolded, but the transport truck at some point struck the pole and tumbled into a ditch before quickly setting on fire.
Damage to the transport truck’s cabin was extensive.
“There was nothing left of that cabin. It looked like a bomb went off inside,” said Lakeshore resident Robb Meloche, who stopped at the scene of the crash.
Reader-submitted images of the crash scene at Highway 77 and Lakeshore Road 310 near Comber on July 26, 2017.
Meloche had just dropped off his daughter at a babysitter when he noticed a column of black smoke coming from the accident scene.
“The smoke was probably a couple hundred feet in the air. At first, I thought it was a house on fire,” Meloche said. “I started driving to the smoke to see what was going on, see if anybody needed help.”
Along with the wrecked tractor unit, the hydro pole was also heavily damaged. ‘It was broken right in half,” Meloche said.
Although the pole was severed, its upper part remained suspended in the air by electrical wires.
The second vehicle — the hybrid SUV — was not on fire, but showed damage to its front driver side.
Live wires from the hydro pole complicated the extraction of the car’s female occupant. She was eventually removed from the scene and rushed to hospital via ambulance.
Essex County OPP spokesman Const. Jim Root said the second party’s injuries are considered life-threatening.
Police have closed Highway 77 from Lakeshore Road 309 to 311. Collision reconstruction specialists were examining the scene at press time.
The intersection is not lighted. The two lanes of traffic on Highway 77 have right of way. There are stop signs for vehicles on Lakeshore Road 310 approaching from the east or west.
More to come.
Const. Jim Root @OPP_WR updates fatal accident in @LakeshoreTown @OPP_COMM_WR #traffic @EssexWindsorEMS https://t.co/ByBPHoD4K1
—
NewsPhotog (@JKryk) July 26, 2017
An image from Western Region OPP showing the aftermath of the collision scene at Highway 77 and Lakeshore 310 near Comber on July 26, 2017.
A view of the second automobile involved in the accident scene at Highway 77 and Lakeshore Road 310 near Comber on July 26, 2017.
Lakeshore OPP collision reconstruction specialists work at the scene at Highway 77 and Lakeshore Road 310 on July 26, 2017.
