A 41-year-old Florida woman is dead after losing control while driving a moped and crashing into a Jeep in Oak Bluffs Thursday, according to Massachusetts State Police.
The collision caused the moped operator, Julia Harris, 41, of Florida, and a 40-year-old passenger from Boston, to be thrown to the ground, officials say.
Authorities say Harris died at the scene, on Seaview Avenue in the Oak Bluffs area of Martha’s Vineyard. The unidentified passenger was flown to a Boston hospital, where police say she is “now in stable condition.”
Witness statements and video footage of the area show both moped riders were wearing helmets at the time of the crash, authorities say.
One Jeep passenger “suffered minor injuries,” while the other four passengers, including the 41-year-old driver, a Newark, New Jersey woman, were not injured in the crash, according to officials.
Shortly before noon on Aug. 15, Massachusetts State Troopers assigned to Oak Bluffs had responded to reports of a two-vehicle crash with “serious injuries,” on Seaview Avenue.
Police say responders discovered the moped and the Jeep Wrangler were involved in what appeared to be a head-on collision, adding the vehicles were headed in opposite directions when the moped operator lost control, crossed the median and collided with the Jeep.
The crash remains under investigation.
