Three sent to hospital after crash in Newport

NEWPORT – An improper turn is being blamed for a head-on crash Saturday that sent three people to the hospital, two with serious injuries.

Ruth Pingree-Knowles, 89, and John Knowles, 88, both of Dexter, and John Fowle, 67, of Virginia Beach, Va., all were taken from the scene on Route 7 to Sebasticook Valley Hospital for treatment.

Pingree-Knowles and Fowle then were transferred to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor because of the severity of their injuries.

According to Newport police Officer Larry Merrithew, Pingree-Knowles, operating a 1989 Dodge Dynasty, turned into a miniature golf course, directly in the path of Fowle’s late model Ford sedan, which was headed north on Route 7. The two vehicles struck head-on, he said, and both were demolished.

All three people were wearing seat belts, he said. Fowle received leg injuries, and Pingree-Knowles and Knowles received multiple injuries, said Merrithew.

Merrithew said the accident remains under investigation and charges likely will be filed against Pingree-Knowles for making an improper turn.

The officer was assisted at the scene by Corinna and SVH ambulances, Newport Fire and Rescue, and Chief James Ricker.

Merrithew said he was at the scene of a four-car accident farther south on Route 7, at the intersection of Libby Hill Road, when the 11:30 a.m. accident occurred.

No one was injured in the four-car crash.