Auburn Man in Critical Condition Following Car Crash in Worcester

Saturday, March 25, 2017

GoLocalWorcester News Team

An Auburn man is in critical condition following a crash at Lincoln Plaza on Thursday afternoon.

The crash caused the 51-year-old man’s truck to catch fire with him trapped inside.

Updates to the victim’s medical condition will be released when they become available.

The Incident

On Thursday, March 23, at 12:52 p.m., Worcester Police responded to Lincoln Plaza for a report of a car fire near the Dick’s Sporting Goods Store. One of the callers said that a man was trapped inside and they couldn’t get him out.

Members of the Operations Division arrived on scene and saw a pickup truck engulfed in flames. Police also saw a man (later identified as a 51 year old male from Auburn) in the driver’s seat of the pickup. Police attempted to open the doors and assist the victim out of the car, but were unable to do so as the doors were pinned shut from the crash. With the assistance of a good Samaritan, police were able to break out the rear windshield and pull the victim from the truck. Once out of the truck, the victim was taken to a local hospital where he is currently listed in critical condition.

The initial investigation revealed that the 51 year old man was operating his 2009 GMC Sierra pickup in the parking lot of Lincoln Plaza near Lowes. While driving, the victim lost control of the truck and struck a pallet of stone pavers, a pallet of mulch, a guardrail, and a fire hydrant.

Based on the evidence at the scene, it appears that the vehicle became pinned after striking the fire hydrant. During this time, the accelerator was still engaged which caused the rear tires to spin on the asphalt until they generated enough heat to catch fire. It is believed that the operator suffered from an unknown medical condition which caused him to lose control of the vehicle. There is no more information to release at this time as the investigation is still active.