Teenager Dies In Fatal Car Crash Late Saturday Night On Bartlett Road

A 17-year-old boy was killed late Saturday night in a motor vehicle crash on Bartlett Road. Police stated the victim was an island resident, but due to his age, they declined to release his identity. He was the sole occupant of the vehicle, and police believe speed was a factor in the crash. 

School officials confirmed he was a senior at Nantucket High School.

"We are very saddened about the loss of our student but know that our school community will rally together to support one another and the student's family," Nantucket High School principal Mandy Vasil told the Current.

School officials convened Sunday to determine the district's response to the tragedy, and Vasil stated counselors and a mobile crisis unit will be available to students Monday at the school campus.

Nantucket Police and emergency personnel from the Nantucket Fire Department responded to the intersection of Bartlett Road and Raceway Drive around 10:30 p.m. Saturday for the report of a single-vehicle car accident. They discovered a 2024 Dodge Promaster van had crashed into the berm at the end of Bartlett Road.

"The van was upright, on top of the berm and showed damage to the front of the vehicle," Nantucket police stated in a release Sunday morning. "Police Officers found that the lone vehicle occupant and vehicle operator was deceased behind the wheel with injuries consistent with the van's impact with the earthen berm. The vehicle operator was identified as a 17-year-old male, a Nantucket resident. Relatives of the operator were notified and due to the age of the operator, no further identification information will be provided. The Nantucket Fire Department assisted at the scene.

"There were no witnesses to the crash nor was there any evidence of any other vehicle or persons involved," the release stated. "The cause of the crash remains under investigation, however, there was evidence that speed was a factor in the crash."

Emergency personnel initially called for a Medflight helicopter to be dispatched to the island, but then cancelled the request. Police detectives and medical examiner Dr. Tim Lepore arrived at the scene around 11:30 p.m.