Palm Coast’s Katrina Hatzl, 29, Dies In Night Crash On U.S. 1

Katrina Lyn Hatzl, a 29-year-old resident of Buttermill Drive in Palm Coast and the mother of two young daughters, was killed Friday night (May 1) when she lost control of her car and crashed into a ditch on U.S. 1 near Sawmill Trace, between Matanzas Woods Parkway and Old Kings Road.

Hatzl was driving a Chevrolet Impala south on U.S. 1’s inside lane. The Florida Highway Patrol’s preliminary investigation states that for “an unknown reason,” she lost control, ran off the road, veered into the center median, struck the guard rail with the vehicle’s left side then struck a concrete embankment.

The person who called 911 was driving a church van on U.S. 1. He described to a 911 dispatcher–according to 911 notes–that the victim’s car was speeding, flew by the van, lost control at the turn, overcorrected, hit a guard rail and flipped into the creek.

The car ended up on the driver’s side. The van driver ran to the Impala and called out, getting no response. The caller got into the water and attempted to open a door, but the car was “crushed up real bad,” as he described it to the dispatcher. No door would open.

The dispatcher placed an emergency helicopter on standby. Units of the Palm Coast Fire Department and Flagler County Fire Rescue arrived within minutes (Flagler County Sheriff’s units had preceded them) and started extracting the victim. At 9:42 p.m., Katrina Lyn Hatzl was pronounced deceased at the scene. The extrication was completed 10 minutes later.

Surrounding areas were checked to ensure no other victims were in the car. The scene was turned over to the Florida Highway Patrol at 10:30 p.m. for its traffic homicide investigation. Traffic was shut down at the U.S. 1-Matanzas Woods Parkway roundabout, keeping the road closed for a few hours, according to FHP. The crash resulted in the seventh fatality on Flagler County roads this year.

Hatzl’s daughters are 5 and 2. She had divorced from her husband a year ago. Hatzl previously ran a business called Katrina’s Crystals, more recently changed to Kat’s Crystal Creations.