66° and Cloudy
Two People Seriously Injured in 2-Car Accident on Rainy Day on Westwood's Hartford Street
Two people were seriously injured in Westwood on Saturday, September 21st – a rainy day - when one vehicle reportedly hydroplaned at a high rate of speed on Hartford Street and collided with an oncoming vehicle. As of Monday, September 23rd, both the driver of the car that was struck and an occupant of the other car were still hospitalized.
A man from Wayne, New Jersey was reportedly speeding in a 2021 BMW, westbound on Hartford Street, when he appears to have lost control due to his BMW hydroplaning. The BMW crashed into a 2016 Honda CRV that was travelling in the opposite direction on Hartford Street.
A witness, who was traveling in a vehicle behind the BMW, told police that she saw the BMW “explode,” with car parts everywhere, when it struck the Honda SUV. The Police report indicates that the Honda lost the front half of its engine compartment. Both cars were totaled and had to be towed from the scene.
The driver of the BMW reported to police that his vehicle hydroplaned as it approached the Mill Street intersection. He told police that he was unaware what else had happened in the crash.
No statement was obtained from the driver of the Honda.
A Westwood Police officer trained in crash investigations found that the BMW was travelling west when it hydroplaned, and its front end encroached into the Honda’s eastbound lane of Hartford Street. The collision was in the eastbound lane but was not head on. Police note that the BMW was “sideways” at the time of the crash.
Police cited the driver of the BMW with speeding, a marked lanes violation, and operating a motor vehicle negligently.
Westwood Police say that the Millis man who was driving the Honda was transported by ambulance to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston with serious injuries. An adult male passenger in the BMW was also seriously injured after being entrapped by the car. Firefighters worked to remove him from the car, and the passenger was transported by a Norwood Fire Department ambulance to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital as well. A second male passenger was in the BMW, but he did not require hospitalization.
Police notified Eversource of the crash, advising the utility company to check a light pole in the area, which may have been impacted by the crash.
