Candia, NH – A 25-year-old Auburn man died early Wednesday after his SUV struck a parked dump truck and caught fire on Route 101 eastbound, closing the highway for more than three hours.
According to New Hampshire State Police, troopers responded at 6:01 a.m. on September 24 to mile marker 67.2 in Candia after receiving crash notifications and multiple 911 calls. Passing drivers reported that an SUV collided with a dump truck and had caught fire with the driver trapped inside.
Troopers determined that the SUV’s driver, identified as Alexander C. Smith, was the lone occupant. Several bystanders pulled Smith from the burning vehicle before first responders arrived, but he was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Investigators said a 2001 Mack dump truck was disabled and parked on the paved right shoulder due to a mechanical issue. Smith’s 2019 Nissan Rogue crashed into the rear of the unoccupied truck, sparking the SUV fire.
All lanes of Route 101 eastbound near Exit 3 were closed for roughly three and a half hours while crews cleared debris and emergency personnel worked at the scene. The highway reopened around 9:33 a.m.
State Police Collision Analysis & Reconstruction Unit, local police and fire departments, and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation assisted at the scene. The crash remains under investigation.
