One-car crash in Casco kills five young men

CASCO – Five young Cumberland County men were killed during the weekend in a single-vehicle crash on state Route 11, authorities said.

It was described as Maine’s worst fatal accident since 1994.

Investigators believe the men had been to two parties – one large outdoor party in Naples, and a smaller indoor party in Casco – before the accident early Saturday, said Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Public Safety Department.

Maine State Police Trooper Mark Miller said, “Speed and alcohol were definitely factors” in the crash, which was reported by a passer-by shortly before 1 a.m.

The five men were traveling in a 1994 Volkswagen Golf that went off the road on a curve and incline and struck a tree after skidding sideways about 200 feet, according to McCausland.

McCausland said a reconstruction of the accident scene shows that the car was traveling at least 90 mph. He said blood tests have been taken of all five victims to determine their blood alcohol content, but the results won’t be known for a couple of weeks.

Authorities identified the victims as: Aaron Harmon, 22, of Portland; Michael Wesig, 24, of Bridgton; Andrew Ameika, 24, of Pownal; Christopher Hess, 22, of South Portland; and Matthew Rowe, 20, from the Bridgton area.

McCausland said the car was registered to Harmon’s mother, but investigators were still trying to establish who was driving.

According to authorities, the car split in two when it struck the tree broadside.

Three of the victims were dead at the scene and two others died while undergoing emergency treatment after being placed in ambulances, McCausland said. One ambulance was still at the scene of the crash, while the other was heading to meet an emergency airlift helicopter.

Half a dozen troopers joined the investigation overnight. The scene was not cleared until around 5 a.m.

McCausland said the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department investigated two other crashes in the same area late Friday night or early Saturday morning.

“There is some suspicion that the people in those crashes had also gone to this outdoor party,” he said.

The Sebago Lake community of Casco is located about 30 miles northwest of Portland.

McCausland said five high school students were killed in a crash in Madison in 1994 when their car collided with a dump truck on the way to school.