A 34-year-old Massachusetts State Police trooper was killed in a crash with a tractor trailer on Interstate 93 overnight, only two years into her "dream" job.
Trooper Tamar Bucci, of Woburn, was struck by a tanker truck around 11:45 p.m. Thursday as she tried to pull over to help a car in the breakdown lane on the northbound side of the highway in Stoneham. The truck was carrying a full load of approximately 10,000 gallons of gasoline, state police said Friday.
While the investigation into the crash is just beginning, Bucci's colleagues are already talking about how much she will be missed.
"I can tell you that she will be sorely missed," Colonel Christopher Mason said during a press conference Friday morning. "She always had a dream and aspiration to be a trooper. She worked very hard during the academy."
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The force of the impact pushed Bucci's cruiser, a fully marked Ford interceptor SUV with blue lights activated, off of the roadway, authorities said. Two good Samaritans who were driving by stopped and pulled her from the heavily damaged cruiser.
A Stoneham police officer who came upon the scene performed emergency first aid, including CPR, until EMS arrived. The officer was rushed to Massachusetts General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
"The tremendous outpouring of support shown by troopers and local officers at the hospital last night is a testimony to the respect and admiration that Trooper Bucci earned in her chosen field in just the two short years that she was wearing the badge," Mason said.
Here's What We Know About Tamar Bucci, Massachusetts State Police Trooper Killed in Crash
Bucci is survived by her parents, two sisters, stepbrother and stepsister.
Mason, the Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, added that she is also survived by another family, the 2,000 plus men and women of the force. Bucci is the 22nd member of the Massachusetts State Police to die in the line of duty.
"The department is devastated by our loss," Mason said. "Her death is a reminder of the dangers that troopers and police officers face each day in order to protect society. While we are heartbroken by this tragedy, we resolve to continue our mission to protect and serve by following the example set by Trooper Bucci. In her brief MSP career, she set an example for all of us to follow. Her life was cut too short, too soon."
Bucci was first assigned to the Brookfield Barracks and then moved over to the Medford Barracks last month, working the midnight shift. She graduated from the State Police Academy on May 6, 2020, the ceremony for which was held at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough.
Before joining the Massachusetts State Police, Bucci worked in the security department at Encore Boston Harbor and also worked as a personal trainer.
She graduated from Andover High School in 2006 and then went on to graduate from Middlesex Community College.
A moment of silence was held Friday night at two of Andover's high school games.
NBC10 Boston did get in touch with Bucci's family on Friday. While they said they are in no condition to speak just yet, they do want to make sure everyone knows just how amazing Tamar was as a daughter and as a person.
"Tamar always had a smile on her face," said Pat Catino, owner of Assembly Sports Clubs in Somerville where Bucci worked as a trainer before joining law enforcement.
Catino says he had just wished Bucci a happy birthday and he never imagined that a few days later he would be mourning her death.
"I was like, 'oh my god,' and we were pointing at the TV, just in disbelief," he said.
"I was in disbelief. I was like, no I have to check for myself," said former co-worker Jeremy Carballo, a trainer at Assembly Sports Clubs.
Everyone who knew Bucci says being a state trooper was always her goal.
"That was her childhood dream, she told me, her childhood dream. Not a police officer. A state trooper," said Jo-Anne Sullivan, general manager at the gym where Bucci worked.
Carballo says he remembers rooting for Bucci as she applied to the State Police Academy.
"She said, 'I want to do something greater. I want to be this police officer that everyone remembers,'" Carballo recalled Bucci saying.
Bucci's dream was also clear when she worked in the security department at Encore Casino.
One of her former co-workers spoke to NBC10 Boston by phone Friday night and shared a photo of Bucci and her grandmother at the Boston casino.
"Just remembering her walking down the hall, saying 'hey Tamar, hey Bucci,' and just having her smile back at you," the co-worker said. "She was just a great person overall. She will be devastatingly missed."
"She shared, she shared, she shared her kindness and she'll be sorely missed," Sullivan said.
Bucci's family and friends, who all are feeling the weight of this enormous loss, said she still had so much to offer the world and they can't believe she's gone.
And as someone who was always helping others, Bucci's friends and family say they are not surprised she lost her life doing just that.
The woman who was in the disabled car that Trooper Bucci was trying to help was taken to an area hospital for evaluation. Police said she has minor injuries and is expected to recover.
The driver of the truck, a Methuen man, was not injured. Police have not released his name but said he has been cooperative and was interviewed early Friday morning. The truck is owned by P J Murphy Transportation, Inc.
NBC10 Boston contacted the Haverhill company Friday, and a man who identified himself as a dispatcher said the company did not want to comment on the deadly crash but reiterated they are cooperating with investigators.
He also offered his condolences to Bucci's family and said they are grieving the trooper's death.
“I have no comment. I know we’re cooperating with the authorities on the investigation," the dispatcher told NBC10 Boston. "We’re feeling the loss of the trooper. We’re heartbroken over that.”
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NBC10 Boston pulled the company's U.S. Department of Transportation record and found that over the past two years, the company has been involved in at least one other crash. Federal inspectors also cited the company for 31 violations, including two for unsafe driving. In one case, a driver failed to wear a seatbelt. The other case involved a driver using a cell phone behind the wheel.
The other violations had to do with maintenance and compliance.
In April 2020, one of P J Murphy's trucks overturned at the Brown Circle Rotary in Revere, spilling 10,000 gallons of gasoline and 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel. State environmental regulators forced the company to pay more than $60,000 for contaminating nearby storm drains and marshes.
And in July 2011, another P J Murphy truck crashed on Route 1 in Saugus. The gas tanker exploded, killing the driver. The explosion also hurt four other people, and forced a nearby neighborhood to evacuated.
No charges have been filed at this time in connection to Thursday night's fatal crash.
It was not immediately clear if the disabled car was struck by the tractor trailer or the trooper’s vehicle. An investigation into the crash is ongoing.
The scene was very active early Friday morning as crews worked to tow the vehicles from the scene. A portion of the highway was closed on the northbound side for some time, causing delays during the morning commute.
There was a considerable outpouring of support from local police departments and other public safety agencies on Twitter Friday, including the FBI.
"The men and women of FBI Boston offer our deepest condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Mass. State Police Trooper Tamar Bucci who was killed in the line of duty. It is a devastating loss and our hearts go out to them," FBI Boston wrote.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Trooper Tamar Bucci and the Mass. State Police," the Boston Fire Department said.
"The Methuen Police Department joins all of Law Enforcement in expressing our most heart felt condolences to the Mass. State Police and all of Trooper Tamar Bucci's Family and Friends," Methuen police wrote.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker also expressed his sorrow on Twitter, saying there is no greater sacrifice than giving your life in service of others.
"Trooper Tamar Bucci embodied the best of the Massachusetts State Police, and her loss is devastating to her loved ones, the Commonwealth and her brothers and sisters in blue," Baker wrote. "Our sincere and heartfelt thoughts are with Trooper Bucci’s family during this heartbreaking time."
The governor ordered the flags at all state buildings across the Commonwealth to be lowered to half-staff in Bucci’s honor, including at the Medford Barracks where Bucci worked.
Additionally, several Massachusetts bridges will be lit blue Friday night in memory of Bucci, including the Zakim Bridge, the Longfellow Bridge, the Fore River Bridge, and Burns Bridge, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation said on Twitter.
Officers were lined up late Friday night outside Massachusetts General Hospital for the procession as Bucci's body was taken from the Boston hospital to the state medical examiner's office.
Bucci will be transported to the funeral home on Saturday.
An investigation into this crash that claimed Bucci's life is ongoing.
