Dunedin woman, 39, loses control of SUV, dies in crash, troopers say

DUNEDIN — A 39-year-old woman died Saturday after she lost control of her SUV, spun into opposing traffic and struck an oncoming vehicle on County Road 1, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

A third vehicle was involved in the crash that took place on CR 1 and Manning Road about 9:50 a.m.

The 39-year-old woman was driving south in the inside lane of CR 1 going toward Manning Road. Approaching her was a 61-year-old Dunedin woman driving an SUV in the north inside lane.

For unknown reasons, the 39-year-old woman lost control of her vehicle and spun into the northbound CR 1 lanes, troopers said. She collided with the front end of the of the 61-year-old woman’s SUV, troopers said.

Her SUV was redirected into the northbound outside lane and was struck by a passenger bus driven by a 40-year-old Palm Harbor man, according to the Highway Patrol.

The 39-year-old woman died of her injuries at the crash scene. The 61-year-old woman and the 40-year-old man suffered minor injuries. All three drivers were wearing seatbelts.

The Highway Patrol did not release the names of those involved in the crash due to its interpretation of Marsy’s Law, an amendment to Florida’s Constitution that was meant to protect crime victims but deprives the public of information that had long been available under the state’s public records laws.