Motorcyclist Killed in Collision Involving School Bus in Caribou

Police say a Presque Isle man died after crashing his motorcycle on the Access Highway north of Caribou Tuesday afternoon.

The Caribou Police Department responded to the accident on Route 89 at the intersection of the Bowles Road/Richards Road at approximately 2:45 p.m. Police say 70-year-old John Cross of Limestone was operating a 2002 ACAP school bus and was slowing to make a left turn onto the Bowles Road.

Meanwhile, 63-year-old Leonard Curtis of Presque Isle was operating a 2011 Kawasaki motorcycle and was traveling east behind the school bus. Caribou Police say Mr. Curtis was not able to stop in time, causing him to lay the motorcycle down on the roadway. He was not wearing a helmet.

Curtis was transported by Caribou Fire and Ambulance to Cary Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. John Cross and one passenger on the bus were not injured, police say.

The accident is being investigated by Officer Craig Peterson and Sgt. Paul Vincent of the Caribou Police Department. The Maine Warden Service, Maine State Police and Caribou Fire and Ambulance assisted at the scene.