By Tiffany Williams –
Dover, N.H. — A routine highway plowing operation turned into a violent crash scene Friday morning when a pickup truck slammed into the back of a New Hampshire Department of Transportation plow truck, leaving one driver trapped beneath the heavy equipment and sending two people to the hospital.
State Troopers assigned to the Troop A barracks rushed to Route 16 North near Exit 7 just after 9:30 a.m. on March 6 after receiving reports of a serious crash involving a DOT snowplow.
What they found was a dangerous and chaotic scene.
According to investigators, a 2026 International Harvester plow truck operated by the Department of Transportation was actively plowing the left breakdown lane when a 2026 Nissan Frontier plowed straight into the rear of the truck.
The impact was so severe that the pickup became wedged underneath the back of the plow.
The driver was trapped.
Emergency crews scrambled to free the man inside the crushed pickup. Firefighters and rescuers worked at the scene before finally pulling the driver from the wreckage.
Authorities identified the pickup driver as 52-year-old Michael Willette of Dover.
Willette was transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The driver of the DOT plow truck, identified as 32-year-old Luke Marsters of New Durham, was also taken to the hospital for a precautionary evaluation.
The crash forced a major disruption on one of the region’s busiest roadways. Both lanes of Route 16 North were shut down while first responders cleared the scene, forcing traffic to squeeze through the right breakdown lane.
The disruption lasted for roughly an hour while crews worked to remove the damaged vehicles.
State Police say Troop A troopers were assisted at the scene by members of Troop G, Dover Fire & Rescue, and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation.
Now investigators are focusing on what caused the crash in the first place.
Based on evidence gathered in the preliminary investigation, negligent and distracted driving appear to be causal factors of the crash, however, all aspects remain under investigation.
Authorities are urging anyone who may have witnessed the collision or has information that could help investigators understand exactly what happened to come forward.
Anyone with material information is asked to contact Trooper Philip Sheehy at Philip.J.Sheehy@dos.nh.gov or by phone at (603) 223-4381.
For now, what should have been a routine highway plowing operation ended with twisted metal, a trapped driver, and a stark reminder of the danger when attention disappears behind the wheel.