A man was killed Wednesday morning after crashing a box truck in Wiscasset.
Matthew Smith, 36, of Wiscasset was driving a white 2004 Chevrolet box truck on Birch Point Road about 9:50 a.m. when he apparently accelerated to 55 or 60 mph and crashed into a tree, according to the Wiscasset Police Department.
Smith likely died on impact.
That crash caused a small fire under the truck, and Police Chief Larry Hesseltine and passersby attempted unsuccessfully to extinguish the flames, Wiscasset police said Thursday morning.
A nearby home was evacuated until firefighters extinguished the blaze.
It took several hours to remove Smith’s body from the wreckage.
Before the crash, Smith’s friends had called dispatchers with concerns that he might harm himself, according to police.
His body was taken to the Maine medical examiner’s office in Augusta for an autopsy and identification.