A 29-year-old Palm Coast mother of two, Katrina Lyn Hatzl, died late Friday night, May 1, after her Chevrolet Impala veered off U.S. 1 south of Sawmill Trace, hit a guardrail and then a concrete embankment while heading southbound. Crews rushed to the scene and performed an extrication, but she was pronounced dead there.
Crash details from troopers
The Florida Highway Patrol reports the crash happened at about 9:35 p.m. The car entered the center median before slamming into the embankment. According to Action News Jax, the driver, a 29-year-old Palm Coast resident, was still wearing a seatbelt when responders arrived and was pronounced dead at the scene. Troopers said the cause of the crash is still under investigation.
Witness accounts and rescue response
FlaglerLive reports that 911 notes describe a church van driver calling in after the Impala sped past, lost control at a curve, overcorrected and flipped into a nearby creek. Palm Coast Fire Department and Flagler County Fire Rescue arrived within minutes, working to free Hatzl before the scene was turned over to state troopers. Local coverage notes this was the seventh traffic fatality on Flagler County roads this year.
Investigation and traffic impact
The Florida Highway Patrol has not said why the driver lost control and investigators are still reviewing the wreck. U.S. 1 was closed at the Matanzas Woods Parkway roundabout for several hours while crews worked the scene and cleared debris, according to reporting by the Daytona Beach News-Journal. Authorities have not announced any charges.
Who she was
Hatzl lived on Buttermill Drive in Palm Coast and was the mother of two young daughters, ages 5 and 2, according to local coverage. She previously ran a small crystal business that appeared at area markets under the names Katrina's Crystals and Kat's Crystal Creations, and she had divorced about a year earlier, per FlaglerLive. After word of the crash spread, neighbors and customers posted condolences and memories online.
What comes next
The Florida Highway Patrol is expected to complete a full crash report, and investigators will review the evidence to decide whether any criminal charges are warranted. As Action News Jax notes, officials have not released further details and the investigation remains active.
For Palm Coast, the loss of a young mother on a familiar stretch of U.S. 1 lands hard and serves as another stark reminder of the risks on the busy corridor while family, friends and neighbors wait for answers from troopers.
