ALEXANDER, Maine — A 44-year-old Baileyville woman was seriously hurt at approximately 8 p.m. Thursday when an ATV she was riding apparently went into reverse and went down an embankment at an Alexander gravel pit, according to a press release from the Maine Warden Service.
The release said the ATV was being driven by an 8-year-old girl.
The juvenile driver told Game Warden Joe Gardner that Pam Landry, 44, of Baileyville was the passenger in a 2008 Polaris RZR near the top of an embankment when the ATV unexpectedly went into reverse. The change in gear caused the vehicle to lurch into reverse and travel at a fast rate of speed a distance of 100 feet as it went down a 30-foot drop.
The gravel pit is located at the end of Wapsaconhagon Road, off Route 9.
The ATV rolled over the top of an 8- to 10-foot-high boulder and came to rest upside down on Mrs. Landry, who was ejected from the vehicle. She was transported to Calais Regional Hospital by Baileyville/Downeast EMS, and then transported by LifeFlight to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, where she was listed in serious condition.
The juvenile was wearing a helmet and was seat-buckled into the vehicle, Gardner said. “Those actions likely saved her life,” Gardner said. Landry was not wearing a helmet or a seat belt.
Landry’s husband, Ernest, who was driving a separate ATV and witnessed the incident, called 911.
Maine State Police Officer Jason Fowler and Washington County Sheriff’s Deputy Shawn Donohue assisted at the scene.
The incident is under investigation.