Lake County

January 20, 2025

News: Suspect in custody in connection with Lake County hit-and-run

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol has made an arrest in the case of a collision that killed a motorist in Lake County on Jan. 13, according to the Leesburg News.

The crash happened on US-27 at Margaux Drive shortly before 7 p.m. According to the FHP, the vehicle of a 37-year-old Auburndale man had broken down and he was standing behind it, directing traffic to the next lane. A tow truck driver stopped partially in the outside lane and on the shoulder of the road to assist the man.

State troopers said that at that point, the driver of a Kia Soul was heading south on US-27 in the outside lane and failed to move over. The Kia then struck the 37-year-old pedestrian, causing him to hit the driver’s side mirror of the tow truck. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

January 16, 2025

Driver of disabled vehicle struck and killed in hit-and-run on U.S. 27

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly hit-and-run incident that occurred Monday evening in Lake County.

A report by WKMG states that a 37-year-old Auburndale man was killed in the crash on US-27 at Margaux Drive shortly before 7 p.m. According to the FHP, the man’s vehicle had broken down and he was standing behind it, directing traffic to the next lane. A tow truck driver stopped partially in the outside lane and on the shoulder of the road to assist the man.

State troopers said that at that point, the driver of a Kia Soul was heading south on US-27 in the outside lane and failed to move over. The Kia then struck the 37-year-old pedestrian, causing him to hit the driver’s side mirror of the tow truck. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

January 15, 2025

News: Altoona woman dies in collision with dump truck on County Road 439

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – Authorities were called to a fatal crash involving a sedan and a dump truck in Lake County on Tuesday morning, WESH reported.

The accident happened at about 8:23 a.m. on County Road 439 near County Road 44A. The Florida Highway Patrol stated that the driver of a 1994 dump truck encountered stopped traffic while heading north. When the driver tried to brake, he veered into the southbound lane of CR-439 and collided head-on with a 2019 Toyota Corolla.

The Toyota driver, a 23-year-old Altoona woman, died after being rushed to AdventHealth Waterman Hospital. The dump truck driver, a 28-year-old Leesburg man, was not injured and stayed at the scene.

January 10, 2025

News: Multi-vehicle crash in Lake County kills 21-year-old Valrico man

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

ALTOONA, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol said a multi-vehicle collision in Lake County on Wednesday morning left one man dead and another injured.

A report by WKMG stated that the crash took place on County Road 42 just east of State Road 19 in Altoona. The FHP’s preliminary investigation found that the driver of a 2006 Chevy Cobalt was heading east at about 6:10 a.m. when he failed to negotiate a curve in the roadway.

The Chevy then entered the westbound lanes of County Road 42 and collided head-on with a 2019 Subaru WRX. The driver of a 2018 Ford F-150 pickup truck tried to avoid the Subaru, but hit the back of the car.

January 7, 2025

News: 1 dead, 2 injured after vehicles collide head-on on County Road 42

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – Two vehicles were involved in a deadly head-on collision in Lake County on Friday night, the Daily Commercial reports.

The Florida Highway Patrol responded to the wreck on County Road 42 at Lazy Lake Road after the incident happened at about 7:06 p.m.

The FHP’s investigation found that the driver of a 2015 Ford Mustang was heading east at a high rate of speed. The driver tried to pass in a no-passing zone while negotiating a curve and entered the westbound lane, where it collided with a 2018 Mitsubishi Mirage G4.

December 19, 2024

News: Crash on County Road 33 in Groveland leaves 1 driver dead, 1 injured

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – The Florida Highway Patrol released details of a fatal collision that occurred in Lake County on Monday afternoon.

According to WESH, the wreck happened in the area of County Road 33 and Soto Road in Groveland. The FHP said the driver of a 2008 Chevrolet HHR was headed south on County Road 33 at about 12:13 p.m. when the vehicle went out of its lane. The Chevrolet entered the path of a 2015 Ford Fusion going north.

The vehicles collided near Soto Road. The Chevrolet driver was transported to the Orlando Regional Medical Center and was pronounced dead. The Ford driver was taken to the same hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.

December 16, 2024

News: Woman, 89, killed in multi-vehicle wreck on State Road 44

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

EUSTIS, FL – A multi-vehicle collision in Lake County on Wednesday afternoon claimed the life of an elderly driver, according to the Daily Commercial.

The crash happened in the area of State Road 44 and Forest Ridge Road at about 1:47 p.m. The Florida Highway Patrol’s investigation indicated that the driver of a semi-tractor-trailer was trying to slow down for a vehicle ahead on eastbound State Road 44. The truck lost control of its trailer, which veered into the westbound lane and struck a 2014 Nissan Sentra.

The Nissan then crossed into the eastbound lane and collided with a Ford E-450 van/passenger bus. The Nissan driver, an 89-year-old woman from Eustis, died after being taken to an area hospital.

November 20, 2024

News: Ocala woman killed when car crashes into retention pond on County Road 452

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – A car accident along County Road 452 in Lake County on Sunday left a driver dead, WKMG reported.

The Florida Highway Patrol said the victim was a 25-year-old woman from Ocala. She was driving north in a Dodge Challenger when she drove off the road while approaching Martin Drive.

The Challenge hit a pole and a chain-link fence, then kept going northeast until crashing into a retention pond on the shoulder of the roadway. The car ended up being totally submerged in the water.

November 12, 2024

News: Motorcyclist dies after crashing into mailbox off State Road 44 in Eustis

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – An investigation is underway into a deadly motorcycle accident that occurred in Lake County on Saturday, the Leesburg-News reports.

The Florida Highway Patrol responded to the scene on State Road 44 at Bottany Woods Drive in Eustis. The FHP said a man was riding a 2020 Harley Davidson FXLRS motorcycle southbound shortly after 5 p.m. when he was unable to negotiate a curve.

The motorcycle went off the roadway and crashed into a mailbox. The rider, a 57-year-old man from Sanford, died after being rushed to AdventHealth Hospital. He was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, state troopers said.

November 5, 2024

News: 8 injured in 2 separate crashes along Florida’s Turnpike

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

LAKE COUNTY, FL – State troopers responded to two separate accidents along Florida’s Turnpike in Lake County on Sunday morning, WESH reported.

Both occurred in the northbound lanes near mile marker 285 in Groveland at about 9:22 a.m. The Florida Highway Patrol said the first incident happened when a driver failed to stop for the car ahead, resulting in a chain-reaction collision that involved a total of eight vehicles.

Then, an SUV driver in the turnpike’s inside lane failed to stop for the previous accident, swerved to the right and struck a van in the outside lane, causing the van to overturn.