Thursday’s fatal crash on Barker Mountain near Newry bears an eerie resemblance to another deadly crash that occurred nearby 14 years ago.

Maine State Trooper Leroy Gray, 39, and his wife, Brenda, 32, were killed when their small plane hit Newry’s Mount Will at about 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25, 1992.

Thursday’s crash was on a neighboring peak, Barker Mountain, about three miles away.

Karen Gray, Leroy’s daughter and Brenda’s stepdaughter, survived and spent more than three hours walking down the mountain to seek help. At the time of the crash, the Grays were en route from Bar Harbor to Bethel to visit family and friends. The family lived in Trenton, near Ellsworth, but both adults were originally from the Bethel area. Karen, 14 years old and in the ninth grade at the time, had just enrolled at Mount Desert High School, according to Sun Journal reports at the time, but she also had attended Telstar Regional High School in Bethel.

Karen’s mother and stepfather, Rose and Armand Bouchard, lived on Felt Road in Bryant Pond at the time of the accident.

The funeral for Leroy and Brenda Gray in Bethel drew nearly 1,000 people, including more than 800 uniformed law enforcement officials.

Col. Andrew Demers, head of the Maine State Police, provided the eulogy for Trooper Gray, while Bar Harbor Police Chief Nathan Young delivered the eulogy for Mrs. Gray, who worked for his department at the time of her death.

– Rex Rhoades,

executive editor

Copy the Story Link