An Edgecomb woman suffered minor injuries after inexplicably crashing and wrecking two cars in as many days, police said.

Nicole Fowler, 25, crashed her car into a store sign Tuesday morning in Randolph, about 24 hours before breaking a utility pole in two on Route 27 in Dresden.

In each case, the car was badly damaged and distraction was cited as a factor. Fowler has not been charged in connection with either crash.

“That does raise some concerns,” Kennebec County Sheriff’s Deputy Mike Bickford said Thursday, after he learned about Fowler’s second crash.

Attempts to reach Fowler on Thursday were unsuccessful.

The first crash occurred shortly before 11 a.m. Tuesday as Fowler was driving her four-door 2002 Saab south on Water Street in Randolph. Fowler told police that the sun blinded her near the entrance of the Goggins IGA store. Fowler said she lifted her hands to block the sun, Bickford said.

“She says she doesn’t remember anything after that,” Bickford said.

The Saab crossed the centerline, hit the Goggins store sign and continued across the entrance to the store’s parking lot. The car stopped on a lawn on adjacent property, Bickford said.

The accident, which Bickford said caused significant damage to the Saab’s undercarriage and front end, broke part of the IGA’s sign and tore chunks from the asphalt curbing. The car just missed hitting an apple tree.

Bickford said he called for paramedics to check on Fowler, primarily because she said she could not remember part of the accident.

“I think speed was a factor,” Bickford said.

The second crash occurred around 8 a.m. Wednesday as Fowler was driving a different car — a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix — north near Carriage Court on Route 27 in Dresden. Sgt. Jason Nein of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said Fowler became distracted, or was suffering from fatigue, when she drifted across the southbound lane and onto the shoulder. The Grand Prix traveled along the southbound shoulder until it hit a utility pole, snapping it in two.

Fowler was taken by ambulance to Miles Memorial Hospital in Damarscotta for what were believed to be minor injuries.

Power lines fell across Route 27, also called Gardiner Road, forcing police to divert traffic through a nearby mobile home park for more than an hour.

Nein said neither alcohol nor speed appeared to be a factor in the crash, but he noted the speed limit in the area is 55 mph.

Nein said the Dresden crash seemed to be caused by fatigue or distraction, which could be anything from a cellphone to adjusting the car’s heat. Nein said there was no indication, such as skid marks, to suggest Fowler made any attempt to correct her course before hitting the pole.

“It’s obvious to me she was distracted by something,” he said. “Her focus was not on the driving task.”

Fowler had not been charged as of Thursday, but Nein said the investigation was ongoing. The crash destroyed the Grand Prix.

Nein said he was unaware of Fowler’s separate crash in Randolph, but said it probably would have little effect on the Dresden investigation.

“You investigate them separately because the circumstances can be different,” Nein said.

He said a driver who has a number of accidents can attract the attention of the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles, which oversees driver licensing.

The fact that Fowler was involved in two single-vehicle crashes in as many days indicates there may be more at work than bad luck, such as a medical condition, Bickford said.

“It raises questions,” Bickford said.

Craig Crosby –621-5642

ccrosby@centralmaine.com