At press time Wednesday, investigators were still determining the cause of the Wednesday, March 5 accident on Route 27 in Boothbay which killed three Boothbay residents.

Killed in the accident were husband and wife, David and Linda Farnham, of East Boothbay, and Phillip Peters, 33, of Boothbay.

According to the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, which received notice of the accident at 7:06 p.m. on March 5, Peters, who was operating a 1997 Ford pick-up truck, was traveling northbound on Route 27 near Shore Hills Campground when he entered the southbound travel lane in the path of the Farnham vehicle, a 2005 Ford Explorer SUV. Linda Farnham, age 63, was operating the vehicle, accompanied by her husband, age 65. Both vehicles collided head-on in the southbound travel lane and shoulder and came to rest.

Peters was transported by the Boothbay Region Ambulance Service to St. Andrews Hospital in Boothbay Harbor where he was pronounced dead. Both Mrs. and Mr. Farnham died at the scene.

Major Ken Mason of the LCSO said last week that speed and weather conditions were ruled out as causes of the accident. The Medical Examiner's Office is analyzing blood samples from each driver to determine if alcohol was a contributing factor to the accident. Lieutenant Rand Maker said Tuesday it may be months before the toxicology reports are finalized, as the Medical Examiner's Office sends it blood samples on deceased victims to an out-of-state facility, whereas blood tests on survivors is done in a lab in Augusta.

The primary investigating officer is Deputy Peter Kenyon. A reconstruction is being conducted by Crash Reconstruction Specialist Sgt. Jason Nein. Troopers from the State Police also responded to conduct a forensic mapping of the crash site.

Major Ken Mason, Lt. Michael Murphy, Sgt. Daniel Sceviour, Sgt. Brendan Kane and Dep. Matthew Day also assisted.

Members of the Boothbay Fire Department, Boothbay Region Ambulance Service and G & G Towing of Boothbay responded to the scene and assisted until investigators cleared.

The obituaries for the Farnhams and Peters appear elsewhere in this paper.