Amherst, MA - EMT Dies Just After Stopping To Help Accident Victims

Amherst, MA - Bradley Skikne, an Emergency Medical Technician at the University of Massachusetts, was traveling along Route 2 in Athol when he came across a three-car head-on accident and stopped to assist, staying there until MA State Police and an ambulance arrived.
About an half an hour later, state police, tracking the license plate on Skikne's car, called his home to thank him for his help, said Rabbi Simcha Levenberg who knew Skikne since 2004, but they didn't know that a half hour after helping on the scene, Skikne was involved in a one-car accident in which he was killed.

Skikne was driving west on Amherst Road in Pelham when he apparently lost control of his 2004 Toyota Matrix. His car, went off the side of the road, up an embankment, then rolled back onto the road. Skikne, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the car, and was pronounced dead at the scene. The road was closed for four hours.

"It was very eerie (getting that call). But that was Bradley; he was always about helping other people," Levenberg said. He was an Orthodox Jew, deeply connected to his religious faith and an EMT at University Health Services and had served in the same capacity in Acton, Levenberg said.

Frank W. Wozniak, 86, of Dracut, was killed in the Athol accident when his car was struck by a car driven by Steven P. Harte of Easton, police said. Harte is facing several charges including drunken driving.