AFTON – Emergency personnel across the county were kept busy yesterday as freezing sleet and rain – coupled with temperatures that hovered at or near the freezing point – made for treacherous travel on area roadways. All told, units out of Guilford, Greene, Brisben, Preston and Norwich responded to minor accidents throughout the day. In Afton, a woman died after her van struck a tractor trailer on an icy I-88 at approximately 1:43 p.m. near exit 7 in the Town of Afton.

According to authorities, the accident shut down the eastbound lanes of I-88 between exits 6 and 8 for more than four hours. The Afton and Bainbridge fire departments, as well as Cooperstown Medical Transport and Broome Ambulance, all responded to the crash, and it’s believed the woman’s vehicle spun as she was entering the highway, subsequently struck by the tractor trailer. According to authorities, the woman – whose name was not released as of press time – died of head trauma. The woman’s four year old son and sister, who were also in the vehicle, were transported to the Wilson Medical Center with unknown injuries, as was the driver of the tractor trailer.