11/3/24 UPDATE: Officials announced Sunday that a driver has been charged in connection to the fatal crash.
Two people are dead and two others are hurt after a pickup truck crashed into a tree along Interstate 495 in Methuen, Massachusetts, early Saturday morning.
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The Essex County District Attorney's Office confirmed that Massachusetts State Police are investigating the fatal motor vehicle crash that occurred on I-495 northbound shortly after 6 a.m.
According to the DA's office, state troopers and Methuen Fire Department personnel responded to a call around 6:12 a.m. and found several people trapped inside a heavily-damaged truck that had collided with a tree in the median near mile marker 104.4, north of Route 213.
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One person was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said. A second person was taken to Lawrence General Hospital where they died from their injuries in the emergency room, police said. Two other people who were inside the truck were also transported to Lawrence General with injuries that are believed to be non-life threatening.
Methuen Fire Deputy Chief Richard Aziz tells NBC10 Boston that first responders used the jaws of life for about 45 minutes on one of the victims who was stuck in the backseat.
“There was a person in the front seat of this truck that was dead on arrival and the accident is still under investigation," Aziz added. "We had MedFlight coming out of Boston because of the person that was trapped in the car and it took a while to get them out. And they assisted the ambulance, taking that person to Lawrence General Hospital."
The victims have not been identified at this time pending family notifications.
All northbound lanes were shut down for a period of time after the crash, police said. The right lane opened back up around 7:20 a.m., and then the crash scene was cleared around 9:50 a.m.
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Skid marks show where the truck went off the roadway.
Authorities haven't said what caused the crash, but the district attorney said detectives are in the early stages of an investigation involving another driver who left the scene of the crash. No further information is available at this time.
