Accidents on 107 pose problems for Revere, Saugus rescue crews

When a car crashed onto the side of the Lynn Marsh Road on the Revere-Saugus line trapping three people Wednesday night, at least one Revere police officer was forced to park his cruiser nearly a half mile away and walk to the accident scene.The Saugus Fire Department used the “Jaws of Life” to free Dominic Tom, 27, of Lynn, and a passenger from his vehicle. A third person freed himself.The reason for the slowed response has to do with construction on the state highway (Route 107). The Lynn Marsh Road was narrowed this fall from four lanes to two, meaning only one travel lane is open in both directions with jersey barriers on each side. Gridlocked traffic forced the officer to walk, according to police radio transmissions.Police officials say the construction prevents police and fire crews from responding quickly to accidents, as was displayed at about 9 p.m. Wednesday when Tom’s Ford Mustang crashed on the northbound side, blocking cars from passing.”When accidents have occurred in the one-lane portion of Route 107 during this construction, it has on occasion been a problem,” Revere Police Captain Michael Murphy said. “Sometimes emergency apparatus has to travel on the wrong side of the highway in order to respond. It is necessary to first stop traffic, which adversely affects the response time.”The accident was technically in Saugus, but in the initial chaos cell phone callers weren’t sure which police department to call. Oftentimes when a car accident occurs on a city line, police from both communities respond before figuring out which police department should handle the accident.