Due to heavy rain and storms in Vermont recently, a large tree was struck by a bolt of lightning and had fallen onto a roadway in Bennington. While a witness documented the damage caused by the lightning strike with their phone, a woman on the road drove at speed directly into the fallen tree and crashed straight into it. Luckily, the driver was unharmed by the collision.
The brief 20-second clip opens on a rainy roadway in Bennington, Vermont, and in the middle of the road, you can see the large fallen tree that was struck by lightning blocking the way. Suddenly, however, a red saloon vehicle drives into frame at speed. The vehicle proceeds to drive straight into the fallen tree. The cameraman recording the footage can be heard anxiously yelling, “Oh, dude, dude, dude, dude, oh! Oh my god! Oh my god. Oh, sh*t. I’m gonna go check on her.”
Fortunately, as the cameraman goes to check on the vehicle, you can see that the woman seems unharmed and exits the car by forcefully kicking the door with both of her feet, which is caught on a tree branch. “Are you alright?” asks the man, though it’s difficult to make out her response. The Vermont woman quickly skips out of frame, while she’s holding her phone, likely because she’s concerned that another car may crash into the back of hers.
Over on HenrysWeatherChannel on Instagram, the video has been shared and gives viewers a little additional context. In it, we get a brief description of the incident from the perspective of the witness at the scene.
Oh my gosh! We captured a tree that fell down due to a lightning strike in Bennington, Vermont this evening. Moments later this car inexplicably drove into the tree head on at speed. She ran out quickly but the police and ambulance were called quickly to check on her! Police were given our video we captured
Instagram, HenrysWeatherChannel
Thankfully she did not appear to be injured! Folks, please always be aware of your surroundings during severe weather events and keep your eyes ON THE ROAD!
As the clip continues to spread online, social media users took to the comments to weigh in with their thoughts on the incident. One user on IG was surprised by the late reaction of the driver, exclaiming, “how do you not see the whole damn tree in the road?!” Elsewhere, a second commenter joked, “That tree was there so long it was listed on Google Maps.” Over on Reddit, meanwhile, one sensible user wrote, “Glad it was a tree and not a pedestrian.”
While no-one was hurt during the accident, the incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of driving cautiously, especially in the aftermath of severe weather. Drivers should always be mindful of unexpected road hazards like fallen trees or debris as they can pose serious risks, particularly on rural or poorly lit roads.
