OWLS HEAD — Knox County Sheriff’s Office Deputies and EMS were still early into their shifts Monday morning, Jan. 16, when they were presented with a mystery to solve.

Earlier, a local company that does winter plow work found a male lying in a snowbank near the dead-end side of Ash Point Drive, in Owls Head. All they knew was what they saw: a male, cold, wet, in a lot of pain, and who had no idea how he’d gotten there.

At 7:07 a.m., the plow employees called 911 and reported their (lack of) knowledge of the situation, and further noted that they were currently holding the male upright while waiting for the ambulance.

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office was notified of the incident and Rockland EMS responded to the scene. Once there, the EMS crew focused their attention on the patient, checking for signs of trauma before getting him into the ambulance and under warm blankets.

It was only then that others who’d come to help found a dog belonging to the man. And then, as Rockland EMS put the rig in motion, transporting the man to Pen Bay Medical Center, a new development was announced: a car had been found.

What started out as a medical call regarding a person lying in the snow turned into a motor vehicle crash that occurred at some point during the night or early morning, on a quiet stretch of road during a storm of rain and sleet.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, a 69 year old Owls Head resident was operating his 2006 Toyota Corolla when the car slid down the icy roadway towards the end of Ash Point Drive. The car left the road, running over some bushes and coming to rest at the edge of a rock wall. After the car stopped, the man exited the vehicle with his dog, and as they walked along the pavement, the man suffered a medical event unrelated to the accident.

Creek Hill Automotive recovered the vehicle, which endured minor damage, and a relative who’d been notified of the accident was granted permission from deputies to retrieve the dog from the scene.

Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com