HOLDEN, Maine — No charges are expected to be filed in connection with an accident that snarled traffic on Route 1A on Monday morning, police said.
James Stellato, 65, of Hampden was driving his 2002 Mercury toward Ellsworth shortly before 10 a.m. when he apparently crossed the centerline and sideswiped a van driven by Ruland Gardner, 71, of Hartland, Holden Police Chief Gene Worcester said.
Gardner was not injured and his van was minimally damaged, according to Worcester.
After hitting the van, Stellato’s vehicle continued about two-tenths of a mile down the road, crossed the centerline and went into a ditch near the Red Barn campground, Worcester said.
Worcester said witnesses reported that Stellato narrowly missed hitting a couple of vehicles head-on.
Stellato was not seriously injured but was taken to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor for treatment and then released, the chief said.
The accident reduced traffic to one lane for about an hour. Stellato’s vehicle wasn’t significantly damaged, Worcester said.
