ISLAND FALLS — A Houlton woman was killed Tuesday evening when the car she was riding in overturned on Interstate 95 in Island Falls as the area was being hit with freezing rain.
Janet Drake, 71, of Houlton was a passenger in a 1998 Toyota 4Runner driven by her husband, George, who lost control of the vehicle, which spun off the slick road and into the ditch. The sport utility vehicle landed on its roof, striking several trees.
Janet Drake, who was not wearing her seat belt and was ejected from the sport utility vehicle, died instantly, according to Stephen McCausland, Maine public safety spokesman.
George Drake and another passenger, Clyde Geary, 33, of Houlton, were taken by Island Falls and Patten Ambulance Services to Houlton Regional Hospital with injuries not considered life-threatening. Updates on their conditions were not available Wednesday evening.
Maine State Police were called to the northbound lane of I-95 around 6:20 p.m. for a report of a single-vehicle crash. Trooper Tim Saucier said George Drake was driving too fast for road conditions.
The vehicle was demolished.
Also in the vehicle were the Drakes’ two dogs. One animal was recovered at the scene by an animal control officer but the second ran off. The dog, which was still missing Wednesday night, is a pure bred Hungarian Vizsla. It has a chip in its collar, so it can be scanned to identify the dog’s owner.
The dog is a light brown in color with a white patch on the chest, approximately 60 pounds with short brown hair and a white patch on the chest, gold eyes, pink collar and is named Ruby. Anyone who sees Ruby is asked to call Maine State Police in Houlton at 532-5400.
No court action is pending in the crash. Trooper Gavin Endre assisted with the investigation.
The same family also suffered a tragedy in December three years ago when their Abbie Lane home was destroyed by fire. No one was home at the time, but the Drakes, Geary and three other family members were left homeless. Several animals perished in the fire, including two parrots, two doves, two cockatiels, a lizard, two goats, a cat and numerous pheasants and turkeys in the barn.
The family since has rebuilt on the same property in Houlton.
Bangor Daily News writer Jen Lynds contributed to this report.