TIOGA COUNTY - On Saturday, November 8, at approximately 12:03 a.m., New York State Police at Owego were dispatched to a vehicle that struck a deer on State Route 17 near Tioga Downs in the town of Nichols.

Several minutes later, a secondary collision occurred at the same location, resulting in a serious crash.

A preliminary investigation determined that a BMW X5 was traveling westbound on 17 when it struck a deer.

The driver pulled onto the right shoulder, but the vehicle remained partially in the right lane. The driver and three occupants exited the vehicle following the collision.

While the occupants of the BMW were outside of the vehicle, a Suzuki sedan that was also traveling westbound stuck the rear of the BMW, pushing it forward into two of the occupants. 

The Suzuki continued off the roadway into the grass and caught on fire. The driver, who was the sole occupant of the Suzuki was able to get out of the vehicle before emergency responders arrived.

Troopers and Greater Valley EMS initiated life-saving measures to one of the occupants of the BMW, but that individual was pronounced deceased at the scene. 

A second occupant of the BMW sustained non-life-threatening injuries was transported by Greater Valley EMS to Robert Packer Hospital in Pennsylvania. Two other occupants of the BMW did not report any injuries. 

The operator of the Suzuki, sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to Robert Packer Hospital in Pennsylvania.

State Route 17 west was closed during the investigation conducted by the New York State Police Collision Reconstruction Unit. Troopers were also assisted with the road closure by the Department of Transportation and fire police. The roadway was reopened shortly after 5 a.m.

The investigation remains ongoing and the names are withheld pending all notifications.

- Information from the NYSP