Two dead after Saturday night crash in Hinesburg

Two people died after their car crashed into a utility pole Saturday night.

It happened on Vermont 116 near North Road in Hinesburg, north of the Cedar Knoll Golf Course.

The driver, Eugene Morrell, 51, of Essex, was dead at the scene of the 9:55 p.m. crash, according to Hinesburg Police.

His passenger, Melanie Squirrell, 39, also of Essex, had to be extricated from the car and CPR was initiated, unsuccessfully, Police Chief Anthony Cambridge said.

It took more than 45 minutes to pull her from the wreckage.

The red 2007 Saturn Ion was heading north on Vermont 116, which curves to the left, but the car went off the right side of the road, hit a guardrail and crashed into a utility pole, the chief said. It wrapped around the pole, which broke into 3 pieces.

There were no known witnesses, Cambridge said.

The cause of the crash is unknown, but speed appears to be a factor, the chief said.

A black Labrador dog in the backseat was also extricated, and survived the incident.

Morrell and Squirrell were transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Burlington for autopsies.

Hinesburg Police and Hinesburg Fire Department and First Response initially responded.

They were later joined by Richmond and Vermont State Police and Richmond, Williston, Shelburne and Colchester Rescue.

The Dartmouth-Hitchcock Advanced Response Team (DHART) helicopter had arrived around the time Squirrell was freed from the wreckage and was pronounced dead.

Starksboro Fire Heavy Rescue also responded because Charlotte Heavy Rescue was at another crash.