New Bedford high school senior killed in car crash

A 18-year-old high school senior was killed and a woman seriously injured Friday night after a one-car crash in Dartmouth, Mass., police said.

Dartmouth police responded to Gulf Road and Smith Neck Road around 10:35 p.m. to find Jacob Pothier of New Bedford and 44-year-old Kathleen Martins of Dartmouth. Both were found unresponsive on the roadway after being ejected from a Honda Accord.

The car was heavily damaged, police said.

Ponthier and Martins were brought to St. Luke’s in New Bedford, where Pothier was pronounced dead. Martins remains in “guarded condition” with severe injures, police said.

The crash is under investigation. On Sunday, police asked anyone with information or video to come forward. They are looking for any witnesses who saw the white Honda Accord “near the town landing on the west side of the Padanaram bridge prior to the crash.”

The crash took place near Apponagansett Beach and Apponagansett Point Recreation Area. Anyone with a personal account or cell phone video are asked to call Officer Brian Parent at 508-910-1790 and Detective Kyle Costa at 508-910-1755, the department said.

Greater New Bedford Regional Voc-Tech mourns loss of senior

Pothier was a senior and student athlete at Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School. His family said he turned 18 in December. A GoFundMe to support his memorization and burial set up by his maternal aunt had raised more than $30,000 as of Sunday evening. 

The superintendent of the school canceled its varsity hockey game against East Boston High School on Saturday night out of respect for Pothier and his family.

“The death of a person so young, no matter the circumstances, is a tragedy,” Superintendent-Director Michael Watson wrote in a statement. “It is the stark reminder of a life not realized. It is the loss of a son to his parents, the loss of a brother to his siblings and the loss of a peer to his friends.”

The school also set up a special phone line and an in-person meeting on Sunday for those grieving to meet with counselors. Other crisis services will be available to students during the week, Watson’s statement said.

His aunt Jen Cullen shared pictures of Pothier with family and in his football uniform with friends. 

“Jacob touched so many people in ways we knew; but, in many more ways we never knew. The laughs and those blue eyes will live in my memory forever,” she wrote.