Franklin — State police on Friday identified a Norwich man who was killed in an accident involving two cars and a tractor-trailer Thursday on Route 32 in Franklin.

Ramon Pantoja, 37, of Norwich was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash Thursday morning after his car was struck head-on, according to Connecticut State Police at Troop K.

The driver of another vehicle, 23-year-old Jason Santos of Willimantic and passenger Danielle Perry, 23, of Windham, were both seriously injured and taken to a hospital for treatment.

The accident occurred about 6:30 a.m. in the area of Meeting House Hill on a stretch of Route 32 called Franklin Hill. Santos was driving south when he tried to pass the tractor-trailer by moving into the northbound lane, where he struck Pantoja's car head-on, police said.

Franklin First Selectman Charles Grant said the town's Board of Selectmen has been discussing drafting a letter to state police in light of several serious accidents on Route 32 over the past few months; there was a fatal accident involving an ambulance on March 25.

"There seems to be an extraordinary amount of speeding and distracted driving," he said, adding the town will request more speed enforcement and distracted driving awareness.

Franklin's Director of Emergency Management William Eyberse said there had been three or four fatal accidents in that area since December 2020. "That's just way too many fatal accidents on one stretch of road," he said.

Grant said Thursday's accident appeared to have happened in a no-passing zone. Franklin's fire department was joined at the scene by state police and crews from the Yantic, Bozrah and Lebanon fire departments.

A portion of the road was shut down until late Thursday afternoon.

Day Staff Writer Greg Smith contributed to this report.

t.hartz@theday.com