Three children were among the five people hurt Friday when the car they were riding in with their grandparents crashed on Riverside Drive in Vassalboro.

Maine State Police Trooper Jed Malcore said the three children – ages 7, 10 and 13 – were taken by ambulance to Inland Hospital in Waterville with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening. The children and their grandmother, Linda Sutterfield, 74, who also was taken to Inland, all complained of neck pain and suffered minor cuts and scrapes, Malcore said.

Sutterfield’s husband, John Sutterfield, 70, who was driving, was taken by LifeFlight helicopter to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston after complaining of chest pain, Malcore said. He was unsure how badly Sutterfield, who had to be cut out of the car, was injured.

The Sutterfields are from North Carolina, Malcore said. Their grandchildren, all of whom were in the back seat, live in the Fairfield area.

The crash occurred just before noon near the Burleigh Road intersection as John Sutterfield drove the 2011 Ford four-door car north on Riverside Drive.

“It looks like the driver fell asleep at the wheel,” Malcore said.

The Ford veered across the southbound lane, went off the road and hit a tree head-on.

Malcore said neither speed nor substance use was a factor in the crash, and there are no charges.

The Ford was a total loss.

Both lanes of Riverside Drive remained open as emergency crews worked from a nearby parking lot to help the injured and investigate the crash.

Craig Crosby can be contacted at 621-5642 or at:

ccrosby@centralmaine.com

Twitter: CraigCrosby4