Lack of seat belt use, speeding and driver inattention blamed
The driver of a May 6 single-car crash in Peru has died, bringing the total number of 2023 Vermont highway fatalities to 29, state police say.
Mary Butera, 75, of Londonderry, Vermont, died this week due to injuries she sustained in the crash.
Butera was traveling west on VT Route 11 in Shaftsbury before she lost control of her 2018 Volkswagen. Mary’s vehicle crossed the yellow centerline into the eastbound lane of travel, where she then left the roadway and traveled through the eastbound embankment. Mary’s vehicle went airborne into a guide wire from a power pole. She was transported to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
As of Monday, there have been 29 people killed in 25 crashes, state police say. The number of fatalities through May 29 has been climbing every year since 2019: 7 that year, 10 in 2020, 19 in 2021, and 27 in 2022.
“We are seeing a lack of seat belt usage; speeding; and driver inattention as contributary factors in a large number of these incidents,” VSP spokesperson Adam Silverman said today.