(Story updated at noon with additional information from New York State Police)
GROTON, N.Y. — A woman was flown to a regional trauma center after crashing into a tractor hauling a manure spreader in Groton early Tuesday.
At around 7 a.m. Tuesday, a pick-up truck struck a tractor hauling a manure spreader on Route 222 and another vehicle then struck that vehicle, according to New York State Police Trooper Aga Dembinska. The crash occurred between Lick Street and Salt Road. One person was flown to Upstate Medical in Syracuse by helicopter.
According to state police, 41-year-old Jill R. Ashley Williams, of Groton, was traveling east on Route 222 when she rear ended the a manure spreader pulled by a tractor owned by the Fuller Family Dairy. The tractor was operated by Walter Vasquez-Ramirez, 23, of Groton.
A few minutes after Williams struck the manure spreader, police said Albert W. Perreault, 71, of Groton, was traveling east on Route 222 and did not see the vehicles involved in the crash that were stopped partially in the road and he struck the tractor and truck.
Williams had to be extricated from her vehicle by members of the McLean Fire Department and was then transported by LifeNet to Upstate Medical Center. Groton Fire and Ambulance also assisted on scene.
No one has been ticketed for the crash. Police said the cause of the crash appears to be “unsafe speed and bright glare from the sun.”
The road was closed for about two hours, but as of 9:45 a.m., the road had reopened, according to the Tompkins County Dispatch Center.
All photos courtesy of McLean Fire Department.
This story will be updated when more information is available.
CLARIFICATION: The truck hit was a tractor with a manure spreader, not a manure truck.