A serious crash on Route 6 in Somerset, Massachusetts, early Tuesday, Dec. 26, 2023.
A third person has died in a wrong-way crash, allegedly involving a drunken driver, on Route 6 in Somerset, Massachusetts, on the night of Christmas, officials said Friday.
Donna Arruda, 68, had been critically hurt in the crash on Veterans Memorial Bridge, and the woman died Friday at Rhode Island Hospital, according to the Bristol County District Attorney's Office. Her husband, 73-year-old Floriano Arruda, and grandson, 15-year-old Jacoby Arruda, previously died after the crash. All three lived in Seekonk.
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New York City resident Adam M. Gauthier, 41, will face new charges over the crash, prosecutors said. He's already facing counts including manslaughter, motor vehicle homicide while under the influence and operating under the influence for allegedly driving the wrong way on the bridge while drunk.
He's been ordered held on $100,000 cash bail after facing the charges Tuesday from a hospital bed; his injuries weren't considered life-threatening. It wasn't immediately clear if he had an attorney who could speak to the new charges.
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Everyone in the three vehicles involved in the crash were hospitalized, Massachusetts State Police have said.
More on crashes in New England over the Christmas holiday
The crash took place about 11:10 p.m. on the westbound side of the bridge, police have said. Investigators believe Gauthier, who previously lived in Somerset, was driving a 2023 Land Rover SUV toward Fall River when it hit the Arrudas' 2014 Infiniti QX50 SUV head-on, as well as a 2019 Honda Accord with two women inside.
Two women, from Taunton, were hospitalized as well, but are also expected to survive, police have said. They haven't been identified.
"This is a terrible tragedy, especially when it occurred on Christmas night," District Attorney Thomas Quinn said in a statement Tuesday. "My heart grieves for the victims and their family for their terrible loss."
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