CHELMSFORD, MASS. (WHDH) - Traffic was backed up for miles on Interstate 495 in Chelmsford Wednesday morning as authorities responded to a serious crash that left a victim needing a medical helicopter.
Emergency crews could be seen surveying the scene on I-495 northbound near Exit 87 around 10 a.m., where two heavily damaged vehicles sat on both sides of the roadway.
According to Massachusetts State Police, the crash occurred when the driver of a 2022 Volkswagen Taos SUV went off of I-495 south, crossed the median, and entered the highway’s northbound side and struck a 2006 BMW sedan.
MSP spokesperson Dave Procopio said the BMW’s driver, a 75-year-old man from Ayer, was seriously injured and trapped in his vehicle. He was later flown to Lahey Hospital in Burlington after being extricated from the car.
Meanwhile, both a passenger in the sedan, a 75-year-old woman from Ayer, and the driver of the Volkswagen, a 65-year-old woman from Newburyport, were taken to a hospital(s) via ambulance.
Procopio said both drivers suffered serious injuries from the crash. Details on the condition of the BMW passenger were not released.
“The facts and circumstances of the crash, including why the Volkswagen crossed through the median, remains under investigation by the State Police-Concord Barracks, State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, and State Police Crime Scene Services Section,” the spokesperson stated.
Traffic was completely halted for miles on I-495 north following the crash, with MassDOT stating that the highway was closed at Exit 83 as emergency crews continued to respond. The left lane of I-495 south was also closed to traffic.
In a social media post at 11:30 a.m., the Massachusetts State Police said it would be hours before I-495 north reopened. MSP officials also noted that, at the time, traffic was backed up to Exit 79/Route 2A in Littleton.
MassDOT officials later said all lanes of traffic were back open just before 12:30 p.m.
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