BERNARDSTON, Mass. – A full-size pickup truck veered off the road and crashed into a home in Bernardston on Thursday morning, causing a minor fire.
The incident occurred around 9:51 a.m. near West Mountain Road and Eden Trail. It was triggered by a tractor-trailer losing its brakes.
According to the Bernardston Fire Department, first responders arrived to find the pickup truck lodged into the side of the house. There was minor smoke but no visible fire. The truck’s driver managed to exit the vehicle independently and was assessed by Northfield EMS but declined further medical support.
Further investigation revealed that the accident was caused by a tractor-trailer carrying an excavator. The truck lost its brakes while traveling west down Eden Trail, forcing the pickup off the road and into the residence. The tractor-trailer continued until it finally stopped at Routes 5 & 10. Engine 3 and Car 1 were then redirected to the stopped tractor-trailer.
The Bernardston Police Department, with assistance from the Gill Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police Truck Team, began a thorough investigation. Eversource and other inspectors were on-site to assess the structural integrity of the house, which was unoccupied and under renovation following a recent fire.
With the support of the Greenfield Fire Department, crews ensured the building’s structural safety before carefully extricating the pickup truck.
The incident was resolved without any significant injuries, and all emergency units were cleared by 1:00 p.m.
The Bernardston Fire Department acknowledges the collective efforts of the emergency services, inspectors, and towing companies in managing the accident. The investigation into the incident is ongoing.
In a related incident, a black pickup truck crashed into a house on West Mountain Road Thursday morning. According to Bernardston Police Officer Thomas Chabot, a tractor-trailer truck, hauling a construction vehicle from Leyden, was following a lead vehicle, the black pickup truck, when the tractor-trailer truck’s brakes failed on Eden Trail, causing the truck to strike the lead vehicle at around 10 a.m. Chabot said the black truck then spun out of control and struck a house at 91 West Mountain Road.
Meanwhile, the tractor-trailer truck finally managed to stop when it reached Routes 5 and 10.
According to a post on the Bernardston Fire Department’s Facebook page, there was minor smoke but no visible fire coming from the black truck after it crashed into the house, and the driver was able to get out on his own. The drivers of both vehicles were evaluated by Northfield EMS, but declined to be transported to a hospital.
No one was living at the 91 West Mountain Road home at the time of the crash as the building was being renovated following a recent fire, according to the Bernardston Fire Department.
Laila Heilman, 19, said she was driving down the road with her sister, Sahana Heilman, 17, when she saw the truck speed past. She narrowly avoided colliding with it.
“We saw the first truck coming down, and it was going really fast. That’s when I first knew something was wrong,” Laila Heilman said. “We just passed the telephone pole and had enough time to pull over. … We saw the crash, so we called 911.”
Chabot said no charges are being filed against either driver, as the crash was caused by mechanical malfunction.
The Bernardston Police and Fire departments responded, as well as Northfield EMS, Greenfield Fire Rescue, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the Massachusetts State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Section, commonly known as the Truck Team.
