By Cynthia Pegram

Published: April 23, 2008

An Appomattox woman is in critical condition at the University of Virginia Health System following a one-car accident at about 9 a.m. April 21. Two children in the car were uninjured.

Goldie Y. Brown was flown by helicopter to the Charlottesville hospital.

According to Virginia State Police Sgt. David Cooper, Brown was traveling southbound on U.S. 29 in northern Nelson County near Virginia 790 when the accident occurred in the rain.

Brown, who was not wearing a seat belt, was driving a 2001 Lincoln Navigator when she ran off the right side of the road and hit the guardrail. The car spun in the roadway and hit the guardrail again and overturned. As it rolled, Brown was ejected, and the vehicle landed on its wheels.

The two child passengers, ages four and six, were both in child safety seats.

Cooper said speed, rain and worn tires are factors in the accident, which is under investigation by Trooper J.D. Allen. No other vehicles were involved.

Cooper noted that when conditions change, even though the speed limit may be 60 miles per hour on U.S. 29, “that doesn’t mean that’s the safe speed – travel according to the conditions at the time.”
On a wet road, he said, drivers can’t stop as fast, and it’s easier to lose control more quickly, especially with worn or slick tires.