Traffic & Transit
Braintree Woman Among 2 Dead In I-495 Crash
State Police identified the victims as Lauren Dyer, 62, of Braintree and Christopher Sheppard, 57, of East Bridgewater.
BRAINTREE, MA — Massachusetts State Police are working to determine whether criminal charges are warranted following Tuesday's five-car crash on Interstate 495 in Raynham that killed a Braintree woman and an East Bridgewater man.
State Police identified the victims as Lauren Dyer, 62, of Braintree and Christopher Sheppard, 57, of East Bridgewater. Emergency officials pronounced Dyer dead at the scene, while Sheppard died Tuesday night at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.
State Police called the crash "complex" and said it involved five vehicles, one of which was pulling a trailer. The crash happened around 7:15 a.m., near exit 22.
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Police said Sheppard, a mechanic, was in a pickup truck following a tractor-trailer owned by the company he worked for. The tractor-trailer driver noticed a possible mechanical issue and detached his trailer.
After getting the trailer off the highway, both vehicles continued northbound in the right lane. But then, one of the tractor-trailer's axles became dislodged and rolled into the other travel lanes, along with the attached tandem wheels.
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State Police said both drivers stopped. Sheppard walked into the road to grab the axel and wheel. Several vehicles stopped to let Sheppard grab the axel and wheels, including a pickup truck driven by Dyer. But then, someone driving another tractor-trailer hit Dyer's truck. State Police said Dyer's truck became crushed between two tractor-trailers.
Sheppard's pickup truck was also hit and struck him while he was still in the middle of the road, State Police said.
The two tractor-trailer drivers, a 28-year-old Halifax man and a 23-year-old Raynham man, were taken to local hospitals with minor injuries.
A fifth vehicle, an SUV driven by a 47-year-old Plymouth woman, was also involved in the crash. The SUV sustained minor damage, but the woman wasn't injured, State Police said.
The crash resulted in the closure of all northbound lanes on I-495 and adjacent ramps for several hours. All lanes were re-opened just before noon.
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