STRATFORD, Conn. — Officials confirmed that one of four victims in a deadly wrong-way crash in Connecticut last week was a college student from Massachusetts.
Alexander Dennis, 21, of Wayland, was killed when he drove his Honda CRV on the wrong side of Route 15 South in Stratford on May 9 at 1:43 a.m. and collided with a Chrysler Town and Country minivan, causing the Honda to catch fire, according to state police.
Investigators say 55-year-old Steven Rowland, of Easton, the driver of the Chrysler, and two passengers in the vehicle, 80-year-old Thomas Lucian Vitale, and 81-year-old Olga Vitale, both of Easton, died at the scene. The highway was closed for several hours while crews cleaned the wreck.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
In a statement, Fairfield University says Dennis was a student at the school:
Fairfield University was notified by the family of one of our beloved students, Alexander Dennis ‘25, that he died early Thursday morning in a tragic car accident. As our University community mourns, we hold the Dennis family, friends and all of those impacted in our prayers during this difficult time. In this time of grief, members of our Jesuit Community, Counseling Services, and the Office of Student Life are offering support to the Dennis family, friends and classmates.
— Fairfield University Vice President of Marketing and Communications Jennifer Anderson
The university also says they will gather as a community to celebrate Dennis’s life in the fall when students return to campus.
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