OXFORD — Oxford Police identified two Rhode Island men killed Tuesday night in an accident at the Route 26 crossing between the Oxford Casino and the Hampton Inn.
Oxford Police Chief Jon Tibbetts said Wednesday that Daniel Mercardo, 31, of Providence and Ronald Nobrega, 55, of Greenville were both killed at the scene of the accident.
Tibbetts said that around 10:30 p.m., Christine Kimball, 70, of Hampstead, New Hampshire, was traveling north on Route 26 when Mercardo and Nobrega began crossing the road from the casino to the Hampton Inn.
“They walked in front of Kimball’s car, and she didn’t see them until it was too late,” Tibbetts said. “It was too late to even react by the time she saw them.”
Oxford Police and Oxford Fire responded to the call, and Lifeflight was dispatched to the scene from its base at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston almost immediately.
Tibbetts said that Nobrega was dead by the time officials arrived at the scene.
Rescue personnel worked on saving Mercardo, but he died before he could be taken to the hospital.
Kimball was not injured in the accident.
Tibbetts said that while there have been collisions between vehicles in the roadway between the casino and the Hampton Inn, “this is the first accident involving pedestrians.”
“There’s a blinking yellow light in the roadway, but it’s not very well lit,” Tibbetts said, adding that the speed limit for that section of Route 26 is 50 mph and that there “is no pedestrian crossing or signs indicating that it’s safe for pedestrians to cross.”
Police departments with Oxford, Paris, and Norway responded to the scene, along with Oxford Fire and Rescue, PACE ambulance, and the Oxford County Sheriff’s Office.
Tibbetts said the investigating officers are Oxford Lt. Michael Ward and Oxford police officer Jeremy Coron, with Paris Det. Sgt. Michael Dailey handling accident reconstruction.
No charges are expected.
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