News, Police

Hagerstown woman killed in motorcycle accident

by Geoff Fox

A Hagerstown woman was killed Sunday after she lost control of her motorcycle on Interstate 70 in Hancock.

According to Maryland State Police, the accident occurred late Sunday morning shortly before 11:25 a.m. on westbound I-70 near the 2-mile marker.

Police said in their preliminary investigation, a 1995 Honda motorcycle, driven by Sandra Kay Wetzel, 53, of Hagerstown, was traveling west on I-70 when she lost control of her motorcycle and struck the guardrail.

Wetzel was ejected from the motorcycle and ended up in a nearby wooded area. Police said she was declared deceased at the scene.

Two other motorcycles traveling with Wetzel tried to stop following the initial crash.

Police said both vehicles laid down and crashed at the scene.

A male driver of the second motorcycle, a 2002 Yamaha, and the driver of the third motorcycle, a 2003 Harley-Davidson, were transported to Meritus Medical Center for treatment of their injuries.

A 14-year-old female passenger on the Harley-Davidson was flown by Maryland State Police helicopter to Johns Hopkins Children’s Medical Treatment of her injuries.

The Maryland State Police Crash Team was handling the investigation. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

Interstate 70 was closed for a little over three hours following the crash. Westbound lanes were completely shut down while law enforcement remained on the scene. Eastbound lanes were open by early afternoon.

During the closure, traffic was detoured onto Main Street in Hancock.

Crews from Hancock, Berkeley Springs, and Clear Spring assisted police at the crash scene.