Putnam, CT – Route 21 was shut down for several hours Sunday afternoon as emergency crews worked a serious motor vehicle accident with entrapment. State Police say one of the vehicles ran a stop sign injuring four adults and 4 children.
At approximately noon on Sunday, December 8th, 2024, the East Putnam Fire Department, Putnam EMS, and the Connecticut State Police were dispatched to the intersection of Liberty Highway (Route 21) and Five Mile River Rd for a two-car vehicle accident with injuries and people entrapped.
Responders arrived to find a two-vehicle accident with one rolled over a stone wall. Seven patients were self-extricated and one was still entrapped in a vehicle on its side with injuries. An additional 6 ambulances and 3 paramedics were requested to the scene as firefighters began to cut away the vehicle.
To stabilize the SUV, crews used rescue struts on one side and a winch, attached to Engine 479, on the other. A mechanical issue forced crews to rapidly transition from the winch to a manual griphoist quickly re-establishing proper stabilization
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Once the vehicle was stabilized crews cut all pillars on one side of the vehicle allowing the roof to be peeled back. Once the roof was out of the way EMS was able to access the patient and rapidly transport them.
According to the Connecticut State Police, a 2021 Ford Edge Titanium, operated by a 41-year-old Dayville man, was traveling Eastbound on Heritage Rd when it ran the stop sign. At the same time a 2020 Chevy Traverse LS, operated by a 37-year-old Putnam man, was traveling Northbound on Liberty Highway. The Ford Edge struck the Chevy Traverse on the passenger side before both vehicles collided with a stone wall on the opposite side of the roadway. All occupants of the Chevy Traverse, two adults and four children were transported to Day Kimball Hospital with suspected minor injuries. The operator of the Ford Edge was also transported to Day Kimball Hospital with suspected minor injuries but his passenger, a 45-year-old Preston woman, required transport to UMass Memorial Hospital (Worcester, MA).
The intersection was closed until approximately 3:20 PM to allow for the Connecticut State Police Troop D to conduct their investigation and the vehicles to be removed. The crash remains under investigation and witnesses should contact Trooper Zlotnick at 860-779-4900.
Agencies on the scene included the East Putnam Fire Department, Putnam EMS, KB Ambulance, KB Ambulance QV Medic, Woodstock EMS, and the Connecticut State Police Troop D.
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