Ice blamed in two deadly crashes
Toolbox
By Gordon Dritschilo STAFF WRITER - Published: December 29, 2009
Accidents on icy roads killed a Rutland grandmother and a Shoreham firefighter Sunday.
State police said Gladys E. Batease, 68, of Rutland, died after going off Route 12A in Roxbury. Police said Peter J. Coe, 43, of Shoreham, stopped to help a motorist who had gone off the road and was hit by an oncoming truck.
Police said icy road conditions contributed to both accidents.
In Roxbury, police said Batease was driving her 1994 Dodge Spirit south at about 7:45 p.m. when she went around a sharp right-hand corner and lost control on black ice.
Police said she crossed the center line and struck a stone train trestle support, forcing the car back to the right and into a concrete roadway bridge railing, off the bridge and into the river, where it overturned and submerged.
Two passengers, Batease's grandsons, escaped uninjured and went for help, according to police. Police said Batease was pronounced dead upon arrival at Gifford Medical Center.
In Shoreham, police said a Rachel Herrick, 26, a local resident, was headed west on Richville Dam Road at around 6:30 p.m. when she slid into a ditch on the north side of the road. Police described conditions as not only icy but foggy as well.
Police said Coe, an off-duty firefighter, stopped to help, parking his vehicle on the northern side of the road with his headlights facing west.
A 2006 full-size Chevrolet truck driven by Jason K. Vandeweert, 30, of Addison, was coming the other way, according to police, but did not immediately see Coe's vehicle in his lane until he crested an adjacent hill.
Unable to stop in time because of the ice, police said Vandeweert went off the road trying to miss the other vehicle, but wound up hitting Coe, who ran away from the road. Police said Vandeweert also hit a utility pole, a large tree and Herrick's car.
Police said the Shoreham accident is still under investigation and anyone with information on it should call Trooper Todd Conway at 388-4919.
Slick conditions existed in Rutland County on Monday night when heavy snowfall temporarily closed the east side of the Sherburne Pass on Route 4 and sent dozens of cars, trucks and tractor trailers off roads. But, as of 8:45 p.m., no serious injuries were reported.
The biggest problem experienced in Rutland Monday night was an unforeseen complication with several traffic lights that were immobilized when the heavy snowfall clouded the cameras used to direct traffic. City Police Sgt. David Schauwecker said police were called in to direct traffic at several intersections until Department of Public Works crews were able to clear the camera lenses.
gordon.dritschilo@rutlandherald.com
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