A work van driver was killed Wednesday evening after their vehicle caught fire following a collision with a tractor-trailer on Turnpike Street in Easton, leaving the van fully engulfed in flames. Easton police responded to the crash around 6:45 p.m. after a 911 caller reported it, according to the Bristol County District Attorney's Office.
The crash happened in the area of 676 Turnpike Street, according to a statement from Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III, cited by the Fall River Reporter. As reported by NBC Boston, the van was the driver's only occupant, and that person was pronounced dead at the scene after being found inside the vehicle. The van driver's identification remained pending at the time of the report.
The tractor-trailer sustained damage to its front end in the collision, per the same account. Its driver was taken to an area hospital with what were described as minor injuries. Turnpike Street runs along Route 138, a major regional corridor, and Massachusetts State Police responded to help divert traffic at the scene while the investigation got underway.
Road Closed for Hours as Crews Worked the Scene
Authorities closed Turnpike Street from Foundry Street to the Raynham town line while emergency crews and investigators worked the crash, according to Cedar News. The closure affected a stretch of Route 138.
The investigation is being actively conducted by the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Bristol County District Attorney's Office, working alongside the Easton Police Department, the district attorney's office said in the statement reported by the Fall River Reporter. State and local police continue to investigate the circumstances of the crash.
A Corridor With a History of Serious Crashes
Wednesday's fatal crash is not the first serious collision to strike this stretch of Route 138. In February 2026, a fiery three-vehicle crash involving a dump truck, a pickup truck, and a sedan shut down the highway near Beacon Building Products for several hours, according to Boston 25 News.
Weeks before Wednesday's crash, Easton police were investigating a separate incident in which two vehicles engaged in a high-speed chase from Brockton onto Turnpike Street, during which a passenger fired multiple handgun rounds into the roadway, as the Fall River Reporter also reported. Hoodline covered that shooting incident when it happened.
Further back, in May 2019, two people were killed in a two-car crash at the nearby intersection of Route 138 and Purchase Street in Easton, when a speeding driver struck a vehicle that was attempting a turn, according to CBS News. Regional planners with the Old Colony Planning Council have since conducted dedicated Road Safety Audits along Route 138 in Easton, identifying speed, limited sight lines, and left-turn congestion as major hazard factors along the roadway.
Part of a Broader Pattern on Bristol County Roads
A 2023 analysis of MassDOT crash data by Jason Stone Injury Lawyers found that several surrounding Bristol County municipalities ranked among the highest in Massachusetts for crash fatality rates relative to total people involved, per Boston 25 News.
It remains unclear whether specialized units will be brought in for this investigation, or whether the inquiry will result in any charges against either driver.
