Bennington, Vermont — Vermont had its share of severe weather on Saturday, with heavy rain and thunderstorms racing through the state. These severe thunderstorms led to downed trees and damage to various pieces of infrastructure.
One of the most jarring scenes from the storm was captured by Henry’s Weather Channel. The tree fell reportedly due to a lightning strike, which caught the attention of the popular New England weatherman. A driver who appeared not to be focusing drove into a downed tree.
After the crash, Henry went to check on her. While walking over, the woman in the car rushed out of the car while she was on her phone. This led many on social media to speculate that the crash was caused by her being on her phone. Police and an ambulance were reportedly called in to assess the situation.
After publishing this article, we had someone who knew the driver reach out to us. A friend of the driver disputes the narrative that was created from this situation, saying that the driver was focusing on the road and was not on her phone. The situation arose due to the rapid change of weather (Saturday’s storm did escalate from moderate to heavy rains at times). While she was going below the speed limit, her windshield wipers weren’t working, which caused the crash. They also claim that the video was edited to make it seem like she was abandoning it. They’re claiming that she was actually in the car for a few minutes to call for help. The individual who reached out to us states that she was “deeply shaken from what happened.”
The video below serves as a reminder to drive cautiously during severe weather, and to not be afraid to pull over during heavy rain events.
Image/Video Credits: Henry’s Weather Channel
Update 5/21: This article has been updated to share the driver’s perspective.
