Flash Freeze Causes Numerous Accidents

By Andrew Gorosko

Both local police and state police found themselves very busy on the afternoon of Sunday, December 13, after an unexpected burst of freezing rain moved through the area, creating treacherous driving conditions on roads, resulting in numerous motor vehicle accidents, most of which did not involve injuries.

State police at the Troop A barracks in Southbury said they received approximately 100 weather-related calls for help from motorists on Interstate 84 in their coverage area. That area extends along I-84 from the New York State line to Cheshire-Southington border.

The calls concerned both motor vehicles accidents and vehicles that had become disabled due to weather conditions. The calls came in from about 11:30 am to 5 pm.

State police said they investigated 16 of those reports which involved accidents with injuries and also accidents in which motorists had evaded responsibility for a collision.

After 5:30 pm, I-84 was in good condition and the calls subsided.

In Newtown, local police received 23 calls for help stemming from weather-related travel problems, including accidents and disabled vehicles.

The local calls started at 12:04 pm and continued until 11:43 pm, with 18 of those calls being received between 12:04 pm and 2:24 pm. (See Police Reports for details)

At 12:13 pm, police received information on a rollover accident that occurred near the intersection of Berkshire Road, Washington Avenue, and Oakview Road.

In that incident, motorist Elinor Dreher, 70, of 21 Cedarhurst Trail was driving a 1993 Subaru Rodeo SUV northward on an icy Berkshire Road, when while attempting to negotiate a curve in the road, the vehicle went into a skid and struck the northbound curb, causing it to roll onto its left side, police said.

Sandy Hook firefighters responded to the accident and helped Dreher and three passengers get out of the flipped vehicle, Sandy Hook Fire Chief Bill Halstead said. No one was transported to the hospital, he said. Dreher received a written warning, police said. 

While on their way to that accident, Sandy Hook firefighters, who were traveling in a town-owned 1995 Emergency One fire truck, became involved in a minor accident themselves, police said.

In that incident, the fire truck, which was driven by firefighter George Lockwood, Jr, no age given, of 28 Riverside Road, was pulling over at the scene of the rollover accident when the fire truck began sliding on some ice on the road, police said.

 The fire truck then slid into a stopped 2009 Mitsubishi Galant sedan, which was driven by Stuart Opdahl, 71, of 143 Boggs Hill Road, police said. The collision damaged both vehicles, but there were no injuries. Police took no enforcement.