Medflight called after crash on Route 6

Dec 29, 2017

Fire crews rescued a person who was trapped in a car following a serious motor vehicle crash on Route 6 on December 28.

According to Dartmouth Fire District No. 3 Chief Richard Arruda, crews received the report of a motor vehicle crash on Route 6 westbound in the area of Buster's Sports Bar at around 8:48 p.m.

When the first units arrived four minutes later, they discovered a single-vehicle crash with heavy entrapment.

"It was a difficult extrication and it took some amount of time, but our guys did a great job," Arruda said.

Arruda said it appeared the car struck a utility pole at a high rate of speed, which caused the car to crumple significantly. The damage left the driver's legs pinned under the car's dashboard.

Crews had to use special tools and hydraulic equipment to carefully remove the car's roof and doors before they were able to remove the driver from the car. The driver appeared conscious and alert, Arruda said.

The whole process took close to a half hour, with the driver reported out of the car at 9:19 p.m., Arruda said.

Medflight was called and landed at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, and the person was transported via helicopter to the hospital.

The crash left the westbound lanes of Route 6 closed for about two hours. Dartmouth police reopened the road at 10 p.m. as utility crews worked to repair the power pole destroyed by the crash.