State police said they received a call about a wrong-way operator approximately 2 to 3 minutes prior to the fatal crash.
LUDLOW — Massachusetts State Police, investigating a wrong-way head-on crash that claimed two lives on the Massachusetts Turnpike on Friday night, said Sunday night that evidence indicates the wrong-way driver made a U-turn on the highway minutes before the accident.
According to a statement issued by David Procopio, spokesman for the
Massachusetts State Police, their investigation also indicates Clarence Lux, 84, of New Britain, Conn., had a medical condition that potentially might have been a contributing factor to the crash. State police on Saturday identified Lux as the wrong-way driver.
Lux and Robert Magee, 28, of West Bridgewater, were killed when their vehicles collided near MassPike Exit 6 at 8:30 p.m. on Friday.
According to state police, evidence they've compiled indicates that Lux, while traveling west, suddenly took a U-turn and began driving east in the westbound lanes, causing one vehicle behind him to take immediate evasive actions. State police said they believe Lux struck Magee's vehicle shortly thereafter.
State police would not comment on Lux's medical condition, citing medical privacy laws.
On Saturday, state police said their barracks in Westfield had received numerous calls for a wrong-way operator prior to the fatal crash, and that patrols were dispatched but were unable to locate the reported vehicle. Procopio on Sunday said state police received the first call about a wrong-way operator approximately two to three minutes before the fatal crash.
Two other cars were unable to stop and collided with the initial pile-up. State police said there were no injuries reported from anyone occupying the other two vehicles involved in the crash, and neither one was towed.