2 Mass. drivers dead in head-on R.I. crash

Two Massachusetts drivers died in a head-on crash in Cumberland, Rhode Island Thursday.

Around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, several 911 calls reported a rollover crash involving multiple vehicles on Route 295 North near the Mendon Road overpass, Rhode Island State Police said.

Witnesses told police that the driver of a Hyundai Ionic was driving recklessly, speeding, and overtaking vehicles in the grassy median on the southbound side of Route 295, police said.

The Hyundai veered left, entered the median, struck the guardrail, and entered the left lane of northbound travel before hitting a Dodge Ram 1500 head-on, police said.

The Dodge rolled onto its passenger side and sideswiped an Acura ADX, which sustained minor damage, police said.

Upon arrival at the scene, first responders found the occupants of the Dodge and the Hyundai trapped in their cars—neither of whom were wearing a seatbelt—and were able to extricate them. The Hyundai began to catch on fire and was later fully engulfed in flames, police said.

The driver of the Hyundai, Joel Costa, 29, of Hype Park, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Jonathan Welch, 44, of Norton, Massachusetts, was driving the Dodge. He was transported to Rhode Island Hospital where he later died, police said.

The investigation into the accident remains ongoing. The preliminary investigation indicates that speed and Costa’s loss of control of the Hyundai were the primary causes of the crash, according to State Police.