U.S. Route 201A in Norridgewock was closed for several hours Monday after a tractor-trailer rolled over following a head-on crash, the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office said. Photo courtesy of Timothy Groder via Facebook

NORRIDGEWOCK — A chain reaction of events, caused in part by wintery road conditions, led to a crash that closed U.S. Route 201A for hours Monday and sent a woman and her daughter to the hospital with minor injuries, according to the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office.

The series of events that led to the crash, which was reported around 3:20 p.m. Monday, began when a mail carrier driving south in a Honda Element pulled to the side of the road, also known as Madison Road, Chief Deputy Mike Mitchell said via telephone Tuesday.

A pickup truck behind the car slowed down, as a tractor-trailer was heading north and there was no room to pass, Mitchell said. Another pickup truck, a Ford Lightning, heading south, tried to slow down but lost control as the road was slippery with snow falling Monday afternoon.

The driver of the tractor-trailer — Gregory Powers, 59, of Stratton — tried to avoid the oncoming Ford truck and ended up crashing into it head on, damaging it and injuring its driver and passenger, Mitchell said. The mail carrier’s vehicle was also struck and severely damaged.

The trailer, carrying waste fluids from the Norridgewock landfill, rolled over, blocking the road entirely, Mitchell said.

The driver of the Ford Lightning that was hit — Kimberly Karn, 37, of Carrabassett Valley — and her 9-year-old daughter were transported by ambulance to Redington-Fairview General Hospital in Skowhegan with minor injuries, Mitchell said. The girl’s name was not released, as she is a minor.

The mail carrier — Raymond Lachance, 59, of Skowhegan — was also taken to the Skowhegan hospital with minor injuries.

The driver of the first pickup truck behind Lachance’s vehicle, the one that had slowed down, was not believed to be injured, as the vehicle was not struck, Mitchell said. He did not have that driver’s name.

The highway, which connects Madison and Norridgewock, was closed entirely until around 7:30 p.m. Monday, Mitchell said. The trailer did spill material, but it was not considered hazardous.

Deputy Kehl Chadwick of the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office investigated the crash, and the Maine State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Unit assisted on scene. The Madison and Norridgewock fire departments also responded.

The Norridgewock crash was just one of several reported in Somerset County during Monday’s snowstorm.

In Moscow, on U.S. Route 201, another tractor trailer carrying liquid methane rolled over into a ditch around 12:40 p.m., Mitchell said. One lane of that highway was closed for several hours while emergency crews worked on scene.

The driver, a New Hampshire man, reported he was trying to avoid a moose, Mitchell said.