Crash kills Charlemont man
By PATRICK O’CONNOR and JEREMY DIRAC, Recorder Staff
CHARLEMONT — A 46-year-old Charlemont man was killed when the motorcycle he was driving crashed head-on into a tanker truck on the Mohawk Trail on Wednesday.
Massachusetts State Police would not release the man’s name because his next of kin had not yet been notified Wednesday night.
“I came up the road and he was in my lane and hit me head-on,” said 54-year-old Eckhard Grull, the driver of the 2005 Peterbilt tanker truck.
State trooper Eric Baumann, who investigated the accident, indicated that the tanker was carrying a highly corrosive — but not explosive — chemical called caustic soda for the Holland Co. Inc. of Adams.
According to police, at 4:32 p.m., the Charlemont man was riding a 1995 Yamaha FZR 1000 at a high rate of speed east on Route 2 in Charlemont when he rounded a corner and veered into the westbound lane.
Heading west was the Peterbilt. The truck was traveling at the speed limit, about 40 to 45 mph, said state police.
The Charlemont man, who was wearing a helmet, died of blunt trauma at the scene, said state police.
The motorcycle could be seen resting against a guardrail, with portions of it ripped apart. Approximately 125 feet ahead, track marks showed where the tanker truck came to a stop on the north side of a culvert by a Route 2 sign in front of houses on the outskirts of the village.
Responders included Charlemont Fire and Ambulance, Massachusetts State Police from the Shelburne barracks and a hazardous materials team.
Route 2 between routes 112 in Buckland and 8A in Charlemont was closed at about 8 p.m. Police estimated that it would remain closed until about midnight for cleaning.
None of the caustic soda escaped the tanker, however there was some fuel spillage. Rather than risk spills from the tanker, Holland was to transfer the caustic soda to an empty tanker, police reported.
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FZRDude
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Thanks Don, but since we ride 94's we shouldn't have that problem the 95 had....djalbin wrote:Sorry to hear it.the Charlemont man was riding a 1995 Yamaha FZR 1000
For the rest of you ... don't be crossing over into the lane of oncoming traffic.
Don
There are some who call me........Tim?
In Memory Of John "Silver" Douglas (Dec. 08, 2008) R.I.P. My Friend.
In Memory Of John "Silver" Douglas (Dec. 08, 2008) R.I.P. My Friend.
