Local woman critically hurt in crash

KEENE — Tragedy struck here again Monday evening when a local woman was hit by a truck while walking down a darkened road.

Ray Brook-based State Police said Mary Demorest was walking along Route 73 around 7 p.m. when she was struck by a GMC pickup driven by Douglas Bissonette, 66, of Lake Placid.

The 46-year-old Keene woman suffered a range of serious injuries in the accident and was taken to Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington in critical condition.

The distraught driver told police he didn’t see Demorest walking near Gilmore Hill when he accidentally hit her.

The investigation is continuing, and authorities were initially unable to provide any additional information.

No tickets had been issued as of Tuesday morning, police said.

The accident is the fourth tragedy to send shock waves through the close-knit Keene community in the last few months.

In August, Patricia Smith, 61, was seriously injured when her Subaru was hit head-on during a three-vehicle crash on Route 3 in Saranac Lake.

Then in early September, after an extensive two-week search, Jeremy Quinn, 38, of Keene was found dead after a fall from a rural cliff.

Last month, Leo Hickey, 35, of Elizabethtown was killed when a member of his hunting party allegedly shot the local father after mistaking him for a deer.

Keene Town Supervisor William Ferebee said “it’s been a tough” and tragic few months for the residents of the small community of 1,000.

Demorest was a fairly new addition to Keene, having moved to the area within the last year.

She was still listed in critical condition at the Burlington hospital Tuesday morning.



E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at:

avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com