Car jumps guardrail; 2 men go to EMMC

BANGOR – Two men were taken to a Bangor hospital for apparently minor injuries after they drove off the southbound lane of Interstate 95 Thursday evening, crossed over the northbound land and ended down the embankment off the northbound lane.

The driver, John Theriault, 49, of Brownville and his passenger, Glenn Curtis, 23, residence unknown, were taken to Eastern Maine Medical Center. No information was available on Theriault, and Curtis was still being evaluated late Thursday, a nursing supervisor reported.

The accident, which occurred at 6:23 p.m. between the Broadway off-ramp and the Essex Street overpass, is still under investigation, said Trooper Dan Ryan. But based on a preliminary assessment, he said excessive speed might have been a factor.

Ryan said the 1991 Dodge Stealth vaulted the guardrail onto the northbound lane and headed down the embankment coming to rest against a rock ledge. That the car was able to vault the guardrail suggesting that the red sports car was traveling faster than he should have been, Ryan said.

Neither man was believed to have been wearing a seat belt at the time, and the broken windshield in front of Curtis indicated he might have hit the windshield, Ryan said.