Utica Woman’s Vehicle Flies 100 Feet in the Air Following Vernon Accident

A Utica woman is lucky to be alive following a single-vehicle crash in the Town of Vernon.

The Oneida County Sheriff Rob Maciol announced that deputies responded to the scene of the accident on Route 5 near Churton Road for reports of the single-car crash. Maciol says 26-year-old Deondra Skermont of Utica was driving her red Honda Civic east on Route 5 and deputies say she was driving at a high rate of speed.

Deputies say as part of their investigation it was determined that due to the alleged high rate of speed and failure to keep right Skermont was unable to negotiate a curve and she hit an embankment. Deputies say she then crossed the westbound lane and exited the North shoulder of the roadway. Police say witness accounts indicate Skermont's vehicle struck a National Grid utility pole and flew approximately 100 feet in the air. Maciol says the vehicle overturned one time and landed on all four wheels. Maciol says witness accounts put Skermont's speed in the village of Vernon at around 90 miles per hour. During the course of travel she allegedly nearly struck several vehicles.

As a result of the crash, Maciol says Skermont was transported to St. Elizabeth Hospital for treatment and evaluation of head injuries. Maciol says Skermont was issued tickets for Speed Not Reasonable and Prudent, Failure to Keep Right, Reckless Operation, and No Seat Belt. She will answer the charges in the Town of Vernon Court at a later date and the circumstances surrounding the accident are still being investigated.