HOMER, N.Y. — Police are investigating a fatal crash that occurred on Route 90 in the town of Homer Thursday morning.
At about 8:42 a.m., state police in Homer were dispatched by the Cortland County 911 Center for a crash involving a car and a tractor trailer on Route 90.
An investigation found that a 61-year-old Cortland man was driving a 2010 Subaru Impreza southbound on Route 90 when, for an unknown reason, he drifted into the northbound lane and struck a 2013 Freightliner tractor trailer that was being driven northbound by Michael A. Gross, 48, of Norwich.
After the near-head-on crash, the Subaru spun off the southbound shoulder and came to rest. The freightliner, which was hauling a tanker filled with whey, crossed over the southbound lanes and came to rest in a swamp area off the southbound shoulder. Diesel fuel spilled onto the roadway, while some of the whey cargo spilled into the swamp area. The tractor caught on fire when it came to rest.
The 61-year-old Cortland man, who was the only occupant in the Subaru, was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy will be conducted today at Lourdes Hospital in Binghamton. His name will be released once family members are notified, police said.
Gross was transported to Upstate Medical Center for non-life threatening injuries.
