By Sharon Kiley Mack
The Bangor Daily News
COLUMBIA FALLS, N.H. — A New Hampshire man suffered head injuries and lacerations and was taken by air ambulance to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor late Thursday after the vehicle he was riding in struck a cow moose.
Brendon King, 26, was trapped inside the car after the crash, which caused the moose to land on the windshield and roof of his side of the vehicle. The animal collapsed the car and ended up in the passenger compartment.
“Addison and Columbia Falls fire departments did an outstanding job with a rapid extrication,” Lt. Travis Willey of the Washington County Sheriff’s Department said Saturday.
Willey said the crash occurred about 10:46 p.m. on a flat stretch of U.S. Route 1 in Columbia Falls called the Measured Mile. He said the moose was standing in the roadway when struck, and since the animals are dark-colored and their eyes do not reflect, drivers often cannot discern them until seconds before impact.
The car was operated by David Moore, 22, of New Hampshire, who was not injured.
Willey said a landing zone for LifeFlight of Maine was set up alongside the highway. He was assisted at the scene by the Maine State Police and Pleasant River Ambulance.
Copyright 2009 Bangor Daily News