A family vacation ended in tragedy when a 77-year-old Vermont man was struck and killed along Interstate 95 as he was trying to help a turtle cross the road.
The Florida Highway Patrol said the crash occurred around 4:20 p.m. Saturday in the southbound lanes just north of Sebastian Boulevard. Investigators said the man had stopped his truck and gone out on the road to move the turtle to safety.
As he drove through the lanes, the 44-year-old woman from Miami noticed him and stopped her car. Not long after, a 53-year-old Port St. Lucie man driving in a Dodge Ram truck couldn’t stop and rear-ended the woman’s car. The collision sent her car off the road and onto the 77-year-old man, who was thrown onto the shoulder.
Paramedics soon arrived at the scene, but the man was dead by the time they did. The turtle did not survive the accident.
As of Monday morning, officials have not released the man’s name, pending notification of his next of kin. He was reportedly vacationing in Indian River County with family at the time of the incident.
No charges have been filed, and the crash remains under investigation. The Florida Highway Patrol confirmed that neither the woman, her 49-year-old passenger, nor the pickup driver sustained injuries.
Southbound traffic on I-95 was shut down for nearly four hours while troopers worked the scene. All lanes reopened around 8:30 p.m. Saturday.
Local wildlife experts responded to the incident by reminding residents and visitors not to put themselves in danger for animal rescues.
“It’s always best to contact wildlife rescue groups or call local authorities,”
One official said.
“High-speed roads are never safe places to intervene directly.”
