New Bedford mother killed in Sunday crash on I-195 on Westport

A young New Bedford mother is dead and her five passengers were hurt when the car she was driving crashed into a Jersey barrier and rolled over on Route 195 in Westport early Sunday morning.

Massachusetts State Police later identified the victim as Cassandra M. Camacho, 25. Her passengers were treated at Rhode Island Hospital for what were described as non-life threatening injuries. She is reportedly the mother of a four-year-old son and was a student.

State Police say Ms. Camacho was driving a 2006 Honda Civic a short distance east of Exit 10 (Route 88) when, at 3:13 a.m., Ms. Camacho was apparently thrown from the car.

“Preliminary investigation revealed that the Honda Civic, for reasons still under investigation, was traveling on I-195 eastbound, when it appears to have left the roadway, on the median side, striking a Jersey barrier, then rolling over a single time as it crossed all travel lanes, coming to rest on its roof in the breakdown lane on the right side of the roadway,” police said.

Police would not identify the passengers but said they are all from New Bedford: three men, ages 19, 26 and 30; and two women, ages 18 and 23.

The crash happened not far from where three people, one of them a 23-year old mother, died on Sept. 28 when a van went out of control and crashed head on into a car.

After Sunday morning’s crash, police closed the right lane of the highway for investigation. The highway was reopened to traffic at around 5:30 a.m. Sunday.

The crash is being investigated by officers from the State Police Dartmouth Barracks and the State Police Detective Unit attached to the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office.

Troop D Headquarters, State Police Collision Analysis Reconstruction Section, State Police Crime Scene Services Section, Westport Fire and EMS, State Medical Examiner’s Office, and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation all assisted on scene.