Students mourn crash victim Washington Academy classmates remember Alexander girl

EAST MACHIAS – Gwyneth Pollock was remembered by her Washington Academy classmates Thursday as a shy, quiet girl with “a sweet smile.”

The 16-year-old junior from Alexander died Wednesday night as a result of injuries suffered that morning when she lost her control of her car on her way to school.

Maine State Police Trooper Aaron Hanscom said Pollock was traveling south on Route 191 in Township 14 around 7:30 a.m. when her late-model Subaru crossed into the northbound lane and struck a utility pole head-on.

A passer-by pulled the unconscious girl from the smoking car before the vehicle caught fire. She was taken by ambulance to Calais Regional Hospital, then transferred to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, according to Maine State Police Sgt. Kelly Barbee.

Barbee said Thursday that the hospital called police at 6 a.m. Thursday to say that Pollock had not survived the night.

Washington Academy guidance director Kay Richmond said guidance staff and administrators at the high school broke the news to faculty members before school began Thursday.

Teachers were advised to send students to their adviser groups – grade-level groups of eight to 10 students who meet with an adviser throughout the year. Richmond said she provided the advisers with a written statement to read to their groups. Students stayed with their advisers to talk about how the news had affected them before going to class, she said.

Counselors from the area were on hand for students and teachers throughout the day, which staff tried to keep as normal as possible while giving students space to discuss the tragedy, Richmond said.

Academy staff erected a banner outside the art room so students could write down their thoughts, she said. Richmond said Felicia Avery, Pollock’s art teacher, described her as a “very good little artist.”

Richmond said Pollock was a Beatles fan, and one girl wrote, “I love you, yeah, yeah, yeah!”

“She was a dear, sweet, quiet child,” said Richmond.