_edited.png)
UPDATE - Operators identified as Bridget McDermott, 42, of Westford, the operator of the Prius. Jamal Brathwaite, 43, of West Roxbury, operator of the RAV4.
Today, at approximately 1:20 AM, the State Police-Concord Barracks received several calls reporting a wrong-way operator driving south on Route 95 northbound.
As Troopers began rushing to that area to look for the wrong-way driver, another call came into the barracks reporting a wrong-way driver had crashed into another vehicle on Route 95 northbound near Route 4/225 in Lexington.
Preliminary investigation indicates that a 2001 Toyota RAV4 was driving northbound on Route 95 near Exit 49, when simultaneously, the wrong-way operator who was driving a 2019 Toyota Prius, was southbound in the northbound lanes of Route 95 at Exit 49. The Prius crashed head on into the RAV4 in the area of Exit 49B (Route 4 north/225 west).
The RAV4 rolled onto its driver side and became engulfed in flames. The operators of both vehicles were extricated by firefighters and determined to be deceased on scene. Their identities are not being released at this time.
The facts and circumstances of the crash, including why the Prius was driving the wrong way, remain under investigation by the State Police-Concord Barracks, State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, and State Police Crime Scene Services Section.
Route 95 northbound in Lexington was closed for several hours to accommodate the rescue response and investigation. At 6:43 AM the roadway was reopened and all assets cleared the scene.
-30-