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WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (WFLA) — One person was killed, and two others were injured following a three-car crash in Winter Haven Thursday afternoon.
The crash happened around 5:30 p.m. on Cypress Gardens Boulevard, near the intersection with U.S. Highway 27, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
It had been raining most of the day, and the roads were wet. Deputies said a 52-year-old Bartow woman was heading west in a 2021 Jeep Gladiator when her vehicle began to hydroplane.
The driver lost control, and her Jeep crossed over the median and into the path of a 2023 Nissan Sentra, officials said. The two vehicles collided head-on, causing the Sentra to rotate and the Jeep to roll onto its side.
Authorities said a 2016 Audi that was behind the Sentra was unable to avoid the crash and slammed into the Sentra.
The driver of the Sentra, a 60-year-old Haines City woman, was pronounced dead at the scene. Officials said she was the only person in the vehicle.
The driver of the Audi, a 58-year-old Winter Haven man, and the driver of the Jeep both sustained minor injuries and were taken to a local hospital, the sheriff’s office reported.
Cypress Gardens Boulevard was closed for close to four hours as deputies processed the scene.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Homicide Unit was still investigating Friday.
