Woman Dies In I-275 Crash Near New Tampa

By Matt Wiley,

A woman is dead, following a traffic crash on I-275 near New Tampa.

The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) reports that around 8:40 a.m. on October 24, Laura Ellen Greco, 54, of Ocklawaha, FL, was traveling southbound on I-275 in her Chevy Blazer in the inside lane at a high rate of speed south of S.R. 56 and the I-275/I-75 split.

At the same time, the FHP report says, James P. Snyder, 59, of Zephyrhills, was driving south on I-275 in his Hyundai Elantra in the outside lane. For unknown reasons, Greco lost control of her vehicle and merged into the outside lane and hit Snyder’s vehicle.

FHP states that both vehicles traveled off the interstate and overturned several times, striking several trees in the process, and came to rest upside down. Both drivers were wearing seat-belts, but Greco died of her injuries at the scene. An alcohol test on Greco still was pending at our press time, but was determined not to be a factor for Snyder.