Picture provided by Maine State Police
KITTERY, Maine — On Wednesday, March 16, 2022, Maine State Police Trooper Robert Flynn stopped his cruiser near mile marker one on Interstate 95. He parked behind a flatbed truck that was being towed due to a mechanical issue. They were parked in the southbound breakdown lane and Trooper Flynn had the blue emergency lights activated.
Trooper Flynn’s parked vehicle was struck by a tractor trailer that had drifted into the breakdown lane. As you can see in the picture, it caused extensive damage to the cruiser. A driver from the towing company was underneath the flatbed truck attempting to fix the mechanical issue at the time of the crash. Miraculously, he was uninjured.
According to police, the tractor trailer then moved back into the travel lanes. The tractor trailer veered into the far left lane and it crashed into the Mediouni’s Jeep Cherokee. The tractor trailer pinned the vehicle against the roadway’s center concrete barrier.
The Mediouni family of Cumberland, Maine, were driving their two young sons, ages 3 and 6, to Logan Airport in Boston, MA to catch a flight to Walt Disney World.
After the tractor trailer pinned their vehicle, thankfully, the family was able to get out of their smoking vehicle. They came close to death, but, once again, miraculously, no one was seriously injured. Of course, they questioned whether their trip would be canceled or not. Nikki Mediouni said officers on scene overheard one of her sons asking whether they would still be able to go to Disney. That’s when the Kittery Police Department jumped in to save the family’s magical vacation plans.
Due to the Kittery Police Department’s act of kindness, the Mediounis still made it to Walt Disney World. The Mediouni family were driven to Boston by Kittery Police Department’s Detective Brian Cummer.
According to a local newspaper, Nikki Mediouni commented, “It was amazing. We’ve never had many interactions with police and I’m so thankful we were able to show my children how great they can be and what they can do for the community. It brings me to tears.”
The driver of the tractor-trailer was later charged with failure to move over for an emergency vehicle and distracted driving.
Detective Cummer got them to Logan Airport with plenty of time to spare ensuring their Walt Disney World trip would go on as planned.
“It was the right thing to do,” he said. “They were a very nice family.”