A Florida woman was fatally struck by a vehicle Sunday night after she got out of her car to check on an injured opossum, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 10:00 p.m. in Hernando County, Florida, the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) told the Daily Caller. Police said the woman’s husband was driving a Toyota Camry when they stopped to check on the injured animal.
The 27-year-old woman exited the Camry to “attend to the opossum” and was struck by a Chrysler 300 driven by a 19-year-old, the FHP said. The woman was transported to a local hospital where she succumbed to her injuries, according to troopers.
Additional information about the incident or the woman’s identity has not yet been released. Officials told the Caller that the incident remains under investigation. (RELATED: ‘Super Dangerous’: Video Shows Cowboy Roping Escaped Steer On Busy Interstate)
A Spring Hill woman was killed over the weekend while trying to check on an injured opossum, the Florida Highway Patrol said.https://t.co/YLvELsmJxJ
— fox8news (@fox8news) August 11, 2025
The fatal incident comes one month after a motorist struck a 77-year-old man on Florida’s I-95 while he tried saving a turtle crossing the interstate, according to a report from ClickOrlando that cited the FHP. Police said two cars were in the center lane headed south when the elderly man moved over the southbound lanes to try and retrieve the animal.
The first driver slowed the vehicle to avoid hitting the man in the road but the second was unable to slow down in time, slamming into the first vehicle, which proceeded to strike the man, according to an FHP crash report.
The 77-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene in Indian River County, over 170 miles southeast of Hernando County.
The front vehicle veered off the interstate after the collision, ramming a nearby fence, FHP troopers told the outlet. No other injuries were reported.
