SHARON — Vermont State Police are investigating what caused an SUV being driven by a 37-year-old South Royalton man to cross a grassy median on Interstate 89 and collide with an oncoming vehicle, killing a Northfield, Vt., woman and her 94-year-old father as she drove him home from the VA Medical Center in White River Junction.
Victor Parent Jr., the 94-year-old, died at the scene. Gail Parent, his 60-year-old daughter, was airlifted to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center where she later died, according to Vermont State Police.
The driver of the Toyota Highlander SUV that crossed the median, Nicholas Tarr, 37, of South Royalton, suffered serious injuries and was taken to DHMC, police said.
Tarr was driving southbound in Sharon when his SUV crossed the grassy median and collided head-on with Parent’s Audi A4 as she was traveling north, according to authorities, who corrected initial reports that said Parent’s vehicle crossed the median.
“Both vehicles sustained significant damage and were totaled,” police said in a news release.
Police closed down the northbound lanes of the interstate for several hours Tuesday afternoon to respond and investigate.
Gail Parent had taken the day off from work to bring her father to the medical appointment, according to Jonathan Spencer, her partner for the past five years. Victor Parent, a Vermont native who served in Germany shortly after World War II ended, had been living with them for about 14 months.
Spencer said his five-year partnership with Parent, who worked for the Vermont State Housing Authority, was a bright spot in his life.
“I felt extremely grateful and privileged that I had had a chance to spend five years of my life with her. She was the most kind and generous person,” Spencer said. Gail Parent had four adult children, he said.
The crash is under investigation. Anyone with information about the incident was asked to call the Vermont State Police Royalton barracks at 802-234-9933.