Portland man dies in wrong-way crash on I-295 in Scarborough

Mar. 21—A Portland man died in a crash on Interstate 295 in Scarborough, which shut down traffic for hours on Friday morning.

Maine State Police said 86-year-old George Vandenburgh of Portland collided head-on with a tractor-trailer in the southbound lane near exit 4.

Vandenburgh was traveling the wrong way in his 2018 Ford Fusion, according to state police. Authorities received multiple calls around 6 a.m. reporting the wrong-way driver on the turnpike in Scarborough, who then exited onto I-295 and traveled through the tolls in South Portland.

The driver of the tractor-trailer was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Vandenburgh was pronounced dead at the scene.

Both southbound and northbound lanes were closed between mile markers 3 and 4 until the road reopened to traffic after 10 a.m.

Maine State Police are investigating the cause of the crash.

This story will be updated.

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