HARPSWELL — A commercial wrecker rolled into the water off Route 24 in Harpswell Wednesday morning.
The wrecker, owned by Harold Gray of Bowdoin, was delivering a dock to the waterfront on Hills Way off Route 24 around 9:45 a.m., according to Capt. Don Goulet of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department.
“The ground gave way and the wrecker plunged into the ocean,” Goulet states.
The submerged wrecker was later removed by Copp Motors of Cumberland. The state Department of Environmental Protection was notified but didn’t respond since there was no apparent leaking of fuel or other hazardous materials, according to the sheriff’s department.
No one was injured. Harpswell Fire Administrator Arthur Howe said the driver escaped from the truck before it rolled into the water. He said a stop block placed behind a wheel of the truck to keep it from moving shifted, “and gravity overcame the truck.”
While the truck was completely submerged when he arrived, Howe said the tide later dropped so that the top of the truck cab was visible.
The road was closed for approximately 30 minutes while the truck was removed.
Goulet said that no charges are pending and that the damage to the wrecker and any property will be dealt with by private insurance carriers.
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