Woman dies after SUV slams into tree, burns

By AUSTIN BOGUES
Published July 10, 2007

A fiery crash on a narrow Spring Lake road claimed the life of a woman Sunday night.

Authorities were still investigating the crash on Monday and unable to provide an identity of the woman who crashed a 2005 Dodge Durango sport utility vehicle into a tree on Hickory Hill Road.

Florida Highway Patrol troopers said the vehicle caught fire after hitting a tree shortly after 10 p.m. The driver may have overcorrected as she approached a curve. Authorities were seeking to identify her through dental records.

The fatal crash was the second in a deadly weekend in Hernando County. On Saturday a 1999 Ford Explorer flipped on U.S. 19 just north of State Road 50. Jaren Gasse, 24, of Pinellas County, died after she was ejected from the vehicle along with another passenger, Lacie Deleon, 22. A third passenger, Edward Gardner, 26, of Tampa, was not ejected. Gardner and Deleon were taken by helicopter to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa.

Monday afternoon Deleon was in serious condition and Gardner was hospitalized with injuries that weren't life threatening. Authorities said Deleon and Gasse were not wearing their seat belts, and it is not clear who was driving.

Highway Patrol spokesman Larry Coggins said the accident may have occurred when the driver overcorrected after drifting off the road, causing the vehicle to flip.

Austin Bogues can be reached at (352) 754-6117.

[Last modified July 9, 2007, 20:49:26]