5 injured in multi-vehicle crash on Route 2 in Stonington

STONINGTON, Conn. (WTNH) — Five people are hurt in a crash that shut down a Stonington Road for six hours and impacted more than just the morning commute.

The messy crash on Route 2 involved a box truck, a sedan, and an AJ Landscaping truck and trailer. The tractor trailer was carrying foods like seafood, chicken and rice from Wismettac Asian Foods, Inc. in New Jersey. The final destination was meant to be Rhode Island, where the products were going to be delivered to various restaurants.

“It’s a really busy, important road for people to get through to go to the beach and to go to work,” Daniel Bueno, from Ashaway, RI., said.

A passerby, who said there was diesel fuel and smoke coming from the truck, ran up to it to try and help the driver get out through the smashed windshield. Bryan Werner is seen in a video posted on Facebook wearing a red t-shirt.

He says he “… was just glad to be there at the right time to help.”

“I felt bad for them, but glad I missed it,” Joy Belle, of Groton, said.

Belle was supposed to be headed to Misquamicut Beach with her family in nearby Rhode Island. She says she may have missed the crash, but she hit the backups caused by the closed road.

“We ran into a huge amount of traffic out of nowhere,” Belle said. “We got rerouted. I’m driving on [Empty] so I was freaking out. [I] actually ran out of gas because we were sitting in traffic so long.”

News 8 caught up with her while she was stranded in the Stop & Shop parking lot.

“I have friends coming, hopefully, to help me,” Belle said.

Stonington police say five people suffered non-life threatening injuries in the crash, which took several hours to clear. Firefighters say the food had to be cleaned up and disposed of properly before the truck was flipped and removed.

“Route 2 can be a very dangerous road,” Bueno said. “People drive a little too fast on Route 2.”

The Pawcatuck Fire Chief says the truck driver claims he was coming off the exit ramp and lost his breaks, causing the truck to flip onto its side when it reached Route 2.

Stonington police are investigating. The state police truck squad was also on scene to assist with the investigation.

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