Fall River woman dies in head-on crash in NH town; police investigating

FALL RIVER – Police are still investigating whether excessive speed played a major part in the deaths of two drivers — one of them a Fall River woman — who died in a head-on crash early Sunday morning on a two-lane highway in a small central New Hampshire town.

“We’re still trying to figure that out,” said Ossipee Police Lt. Anthony Castaldo.

The Fall River woman, who was declared dead at the scene, has been identified as 53-year-old Donna Camara.

The other driver, identified as 74-year-old John Berry of Ossipee, was declared dead after being taken to Huggins Hospital in the town of Wolfeboro, which is also in Carroll County.

There were no passengers in either vehicle, Castaldo said.

Police say the crash happened shortly after 2 a.m. and was reported by a driver who came upon the scene while on his way to work.

Castaldo said the state police reconstruction team had determined that Camara drove her 2018 Acura SE TLX sports sedan across the center line and slammed head-first into the 2017 Dodge Caravan being driven by Berry.

He said there was no immediate evidence that either driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Castaldo said Tuesday that he’s waiting to hear from state police crash investigators as to whether speeding might have been involved.

Castaldo said unlike Berry, Camara was not wearing a seat belt and shoulder harness when the two vehicles collided in front of one of the few houses on that rural stretch of highway road.

Camara, who was heading south, had a solid, no-pass line in her travel lane. The northbound travel lane where the crash occurred, however, permits vehicles traveling in that direction to pass one another.

Castaldo said Route 16 had recently been repaved and that weather conditions were clear early Sunday morning.

He described that section of Route 16 as straight with no bends in the road and no cross-streets.

“You’re lucky to see a car for 5 miles that time of night,” he said, adding that the posted speed limit there is 45 mph.

And although Castaldo said the section of highway where the crash occurred is not particularly well-lit, he added that on the night of the crash there was “a wicked full moon” that helped brighten the surroundings.

Castaldo says he spoke to a woman identifying herself as Camara's sister, who said she didn’t know why her sibling was driving in New Hampshire.

“Why was she up here?” he said.

Castaldo said that Perry, the driver of the Dodge van, was “very well known” in and around town.

Castaldo, 45, said even though Route 16 isn’t a major thoroughfare such as I-95 and I-93, it’s well known as “the corridor that gets you from the coast to northern New Hampshire.”

“It’s one of the busier roads in the state by far,” he said.