The union representing Vermont State Police troopers has provided additional information about the injuries suffered by a member of the force Friday morning when the cruiser he was driving slammed into a fire truck that had stopped at a crash scene.
State police and hospital officials have said little about the nature of the injuries suffered by 41-year-old Cpl. Eric Vitali in the crash on Interstate 89 in Bethel, other than to say they were “serious.”
In an email to news outlets on Monday, Mike O’Neil, executive director of the Vermont Troopers’ Association, shared a post from the fundraising site Help a Hero seeking to assist Vitali’s family with expenses.
“Eric suffered life-threatening traumatic injuries, and his condition is critical. His injuries include a traumatic brain injury, spinal fractures, and pelvis fracture,” the posting stated. “His doctors are indicating that the coming 72 hours will be critical in determining the outcome of his recovery.”
Vitali, a 19-year state police veteran, was airlifted to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire following the crash, which took place around 8:30 a.m. Friday in the northbound lanes of I-89 north of the Bethel exit, according to state police.
Vitali, state police said in a press release Friday evening, was wearing a seatbelt and driving in the passing lane when he struck the rear of an unoccupied Bethel Volunteer Fire Department tanker truck.
The truck, according to the release, had been parked on the interstate to provide scene protection for a motor-vehicle crash that had taken place about an hour earlier.
“The force of the impact between the cruiser and the fire truck was significant and indicates the cruiser was traveling at highway speeds when the crash occurred,” police said in the release.
In response to a request for additional information about the crash, Adam Silverman, a state police spokesperson, said he could not immediately provide more details.
“The investigation into the crash, including the speed at which he was traveling, is ongoing,” Silverman wrote in an email Monday. “Typically crash investigations of this nature can take a month or longer to complete.”
He referred questions regarding Vitali’s medical condition to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. A spokesperson for the hospital said in an email Monday, “Cpl. Vitali’s name is not on the list of patients for whom we are authorized to release information.”
Vitali was most recently assigned to the state police barracks in Royalton and, according to state police, is a member of the Critical Action Team, Underwater Recovery Team and the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program.
“His passion is spending time with his family, outdoor sports including camping, hunting, mountain biking, motorcycle riding, jeeping, and recreational scuba diving,” the online fundraising post reads.
“He has a passion for and is an instructor in jiu jitsu which he shares with his family,” the post says. “He also has a passion for blade-smithing.”
