No injuries result after truck strikes house in Bernardston

A black truck struck a home at 91 West Mountain Road in Bernardston on Thursday morning.

A black truck struck a home at 91 West Mountain Road in Bernardston on Thursday morning. FOR THE RECORDER/SAM FERLAND

First responders line Route 5 after a truck struck a house on nearby West Mountain Road in Bernardston on Thursday morning.

First responders line Route 5 after a truck struck a house on nearby West Mountain Road in Bernardston on Thursday morning.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

Staff Writer

Published: 06-06-2024 1:11 PM

Modified: 06-08-2024 2:44 PM


BERNARDSTON — No one was injured after a black pickup truck crashed into a house on West Mountain Road Thursday morning.

According to Bernardston Police Officer Thomas Chabot, a tractor-trailer truck, hauling a construction vehicle from Leyden, was following a lead vehicle, the black pickup truck, when the tractor-trailer truck’s brakes failed on Eden Trail, causing the truck to strike the lead vehicle at around 10 a.m. Chabot said the black truck then spun out of control and struck a house at 91 West Mountain Road.

Meanwhile, the tractor-trailer truck finally managed to stop when it reached Routes 5 and 10.

According to a post on the Bernardston Fire Department’s Facebook page, there was minor smoke but no visible fire coming from the black truck after it crashed into the house, and the driver was able to get out on his own. The drivers of both vehicles were evaluated by Northfield EMS, but declined to be transported to a hospital.

No one was living at the 91 West Mountain Road home at the time of the crash as the building was being renovated following a recent fire, according to the Bernardston Fire Department.

Laila Heilman, 19, said she was driving down the road with her sister, Sahana Heilman, 17, when she saw the truck speed past. She narrowly avoided colliding with it.

“We saw the first truck coming down, and it was going really fast. That’s when I first knew something was wrong,” Laila Heilman said. “We just passed the telephone pole and had enough time to pull over. ... We saw the crash, so we called 911.”

Chabot said no charges are being filed against either driver, as the crash was caused by mechanical malfunction.

The Bernardston Police and Fire departments responded, as well as Northfield EMS, Greenfield Fire Rescue, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the Massachusetts State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Section, commonly known as the Truck Team.

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429.