2-car crash that caused delays on Port Matilda Highway under investigation, police say

A two-vehicle crash on the Port Matilda Highway caused major delays during the Wednesday morning commute for those heading to and from the Philipsburg area.

At 7:09 a.m., Hope Fire Company, Reliance Fire Company and Moshannon Valley EMS were dispatched to the scene of a motor vehicle accident with injuries and entrapment on the 4100 block of Port Matilda Highway/U.S. Route 322 east of Hannah Furnace Road.

Gheorghe Miller, 19, of Philipsburg was traveling westbound on 322 when he lost consciousness and subsequently lost control of his vehicle, according to state police at Rockview. The car began to swerve and entered the oncoming lane of traffic, where it collided with a car driven by Angela McGarvey, 42, of Philipsburg, police said.

EMS found the two vehicles involved in a “T-bone type collision” partially blocking the eastbound lane of Port Matilda Highway, said Justin Butterworth, assistant chief of Hope Fire Company. One patient was trapped in a vehicle.

When units from the Philipsburg fire department arrived, they extricated the trapped victim and handled “other hazards” that resulted from the collision, Butterworth said.

Police said both Miller and McGarvey suffered moderate injuries and were transported by EMS to Mount Nittany Medical Center, where they were treated. A passenger in Miller’s car was also transported for injuries.

Miller was interviewed at MNMC, where interviewers detected signs of impairment and he admitted to taking pills prior to driving, police said.

The eastbound lane of Route 322 was closed for the duration of the incident, which emergency crews cleared at 8:45 a.m., Butterworth said.

Traffic was backed up significantly eastbound, according to Butterworth and multiple eyewitness reports, but westbound traffic was minimal.

In addition to the Philipsburg fire department and Moshannon Valley EMS, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation was also on scene. Port Matilda Fire Company was dispatched but canceled.

PSP Rockview is conducting the investigation, pending blood test results.

This story was originally published September 25, 2019 at 1:05 PM.