No one was seriously injured in a four-vehicle wrong-way crash on I-89 in Middlesex on Sunday

May 18, 2026  |  By Lisa Scagliotti

No one was seriously injured on Sunday afternoon when an elderly wrong-way driver touched off a four-vehicle crash along Interstate 89 southbound in Middlesex, according to Vermont State Police.

The incident began around 1 p.m. during busy weekend daytime traffic. 

State police reported that at 1:12 p.m., they received the first report of a vehicle driving the wrong way on I-89 southbound in Berlin near mile marker 51. 

Troopers from the Berlin barracks responded, and more reports soon came in that the vehicle had crashed near mile marker 54 in Middlesex. 

They arrived at the crash scene to find that a 2023 Buick Encore had crashed into a 2019 Peterbilt flatbed truck that had been traveling in the southbound passing lane. 

The Peterbilt went into the median and stopped on the edge of the northbound side of the interstate, police said. 

The Buick struck two other vehicles – a van and an SUV. 

“When [the Buick] spun out after the crash, it resulted in additional damage to two other vehicles: a 2025 Ram Promaster 2500 and a 2024 Ford Edge,” Trooper Rodzel’s report explains. 

The Buick was driven by 79-year-old Judith Woodbeck of Williamstown, who was wearing a seatbelt, police said. Woodbeck suffered minor injuries and was transported to Central Vermont Medical Center, police said. Troopers went to the hospital, where they met Woodbeck and issued her a citation to appear in Washington Superior Court Criminal Division on July 16 to face a charge of gross negligent operation. 

The flatbed was driven by Timothy Gray, 44, of Shelburne. He had a 15-year-old passenger from Burlington along. Both were wearing seatbelts and were not injured, police said. The vehicle had moderate front-end damage. 

The 2024 Ford Edge was driven by Steven Ferland, 59, of Hardwick. He had two adult passengers, ages 63 and 33. All were wearing seatbelts, and no one was injured, police noted. The vehicle had minor front driver’s side damage, police said. 

The Ram van was driven by Daniel Silvia, 58, of Taftville, Connecticut. He and his 46-year-old passenger were both wearing seatbelts and were uninjured. The vehicle had minor front driver’s side damage, according to the police report. 

Both the Buick, which had major front passenger side damage, and the flatbed with moderate front end damage were towed from the scene. The other two vehicles – the Ram van and Ford SUV – were driven from the scene, according to police. 

The incident tied up traffic for a couple of hours as I-89 southbound was only open for one lane of travel during this time. The weather and road conditions at the time of the incident were clear and dry. 

Agencies that responded to the incident, along with Vermont State Police, were Berlin Police, Barre Town Ambulance, Montpelier Ambulance, Montpelier Fire Department and Middlesex Fire Department.