GORHAM – A Gorham man veered off the road and into a cemetery Thursday morning, destroying a number of gravestones, including some that date back to the early 1800s.

Dennis Worrall, 58, was driving a 2006 Mercury Marquis on North Gorham Road at around 8:30 a.m. when he suffered what police believe to be a seizure. He lost control of the vehicle, which went through a cattle fence and careened through White Rock Cemetery knocking over gravestones.

“He took out quite a few cemetery stones,” said Sgt. Michael Nault of the Gorham Police Department. “It looked like he cleared a swath.”

Worrall was conscious and alert when police arrived, Nault said, and he was transferred to the hospital. No charges are expected.

The cemetery, which is owned by the town and operated by the White Rock Cemetery Association, has gravestones spanning back years as well as new ones, said Nault, who said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if damage was totaled at $15,000-$20,000 was done to the gravestones.

“Obviously, some of them are priceless,” he said.

Jocelia Hartwell, who lives near the cemetery and is one of its trustees, said she and her husband estimated that Worrell’s car went for about 100 yards into the cemetery before he regained control of the car.

The trail is clearly visible from the right corner, nearest the road, diagonally toward the left rear corner. The damaged stones included old slate panels dating back to the early 1800s, many sheared off and left in pieces.

“All these, we’ll have to piece together,” Hartwell said.

Near the end of the path of damage, a stone, marking the grave of Hartwell’s aunt, Ethel Shurtleff, was knocked clean off its base. Nearby, the tire tracks turn and lead to an access road. Next to its base, a pot of flowers remains undisturbed.

“They weren’t even touched,” Hartwell said.

Jocelia Hartwell, a member of the White Rock Cemetery Trustees, examines the stone marking the grave of her aunt, Ethel Shurtleff. Police said a man having a seizure veered off the road into the cemetery, and struck several stones, including this one.
Police say a man having a seizure veered off the road, through this fence, and into White Rock Cemetery in Gorham Thursday morning.
Police said a man having a seizure veered off the road into White Rock Cemetery Thursday morning, causing damage to more than a dozen antique gravestones, some of which date back to the early 1800s.