Route 33 crash in Greenland: Two drivers hospitalized, road shut down in morning commute

GREENLAND — Two drivers were hospitalized and Route 33 in Greenland was closed in both directions Monday after a serious car crash during the morning commute.

Two single-occupant vehicles traveling in opposite directions collided on Portsmouth Avenue around 8 a.m. Monday in front of MACterials, sending both drivers to Portsmouth Regional Hospital, according to Greenland Police Chief Tara Tucker.

“The vehicle traveling east veered over into the center turn lane and apparently veered a little bit further into the oncoming traffic lane,” Tucker said. “It actually had contact with two vehicles, but the first one was very minor. The second had serious, serious car damage and both people were injured.”

Responders had to break into both damaged vehicles to help the drivers exit the wreckage, Tucker said. The westbound driver was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. Greenland police were not immediately certain about the eastbound driver’s condition because he was still being treated.

The crash is being investigated by Greenland police. Tucker said the department still needs to interview the eastbound driver but had interviewed the westbound driver and several witnesses.

“I can tell you that we don’t think any substances were involved,” she said. “We try and cross off (possible causes of car crashes from) the list as we go, so we don’t have any evidence of that.”

No charges were filed as a result of the incident on Monday morning, Tucker said.

Both vehicles were white SUVs and were sent off the roadway due to the force of the crash, causing debris to litter the roadway and traffic to snarl.

Route 33 was closed for roughly 45 minutes to an hour as emergency crews cleared the scene.

“We had the whole road that we had to use and deploy all the resources there,” Tucker said. "Traffic on Route 33 is really heavy during that time but I'm always impressed at how understanding people are, the motoring public. So many witnesses stopped. People that thought they could help stopped. Because of all of them, that makes our jobs a lot easier.”

Mutual aid was provided by the Greenland Fire Department, Advanced Life Support from Exeter Hospital, the Newington Police Department, and the Stratham police and fire departments.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Route 33 crash in Greenland NH: Two drivers hospitalized