Student In Critical Condition After Meriden Crash: UPDATE

MERIDEN, CT — The Wilcox Technical High School student injured in a crash near the school is in critical condition at Hartford Hospital, Meriden Police said in a Thursday afternoon update. At about 7:30 a.m., police responded to Oregon Road in the area of Red Bridge on a report of a single vehicle crash into a tree.

Arriving officers found a 2003 Honda Odyssey had struck a tree located near the entrance for the Quinnipiac Trail parking lot, according to Lt. Thomas Cossette, commander of the accident reconstruction unit. The vehicle had struck the tree on its driver’s side door and had significant damage.

Cossette said a 17-year-old male inside the vehicle was unconscious and was extricated from the vehicle by fire department personnel. Due to the seriousness of his injuries, the teen was taken to Hartford Hospital via Life Star and is currently listed in critical condition, according to Cossette. There were no other passengers in the vehicle.

“The initial investigation reveals that the 17-year-old male is a student (Senior) at Wilcox Technical High School and was traveling north towards the school,” Cossette wrote in a press release. “He had lost control of the vehicle, swerved into the southbound lane and overcorrected the wheel causing the vehicle to rotate 180 degrees and strike the tree. Officers are looking at speed as a contributing factor.”

The accident remains under investigation by the Meriden Police Department’s Accident Reconstruction Unit. Anyone with information is asked to contact Officer Christian Rodriguez at 203-630-6215.