Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition

Woman, 21, killed in fiery wreck with boyfriend

She earlier had posted video of the car going 132 mph

- By Tonya Alanez and Doug Phillips

Hours before a young couple plunged to a fiery death in single-car wreck that closed down the Golden Glades Interchang­e on Friday morning, the 21-year-old passenger shot video from inside a car that was going 132 mph, her Instagram account shows.

The couple died in the burning Mercedes-Benz. Troy Jozef Andrews, of Hobe Sound, and also 21, was driving. His girlfriend, Brooklyn Taylor Easter, of Port Saint Lucie, was his passenger, the highway patrol said late Friday afternoon.

The Miami-Dade traffic choke point known as the Golden Glades Interchang­e fully reopened Friday afternoon nearly 12 hours after the Mercedes went over a concrete barrier, smashed into a large sign and fell to the highway below.

It was 2:25 a.m. when the car crashed and plunged onto the southbound lanes of Interstate 95, landed on its roof and burst into flames, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

A video clip posted to Easter’s Instagram account after midnight shows a shot of a car’s speedomete­r hitting 132 mph as it whizzes through downtown Miami.

The car had been traveling north on an Interstate 95 ramp when it went off course, said Lt. Alex Camacho, an FHP spokesman.

“For reasons yet to be determined, the black Mercedes traveled over the concrete traffic barrier, struck a large traffic sign and landed on its roof onto southbound Interstate 95,” he said. “The vehicle became fully engulfed in flames.”

Andrews and Easter were pronounced dead at the crash scene, officials said.

Photos posted to their Instagram pages show a couple in the throes of young love.

A video post on Andrews’ Instagram account from two weeks ago shows the blond couple mugging for the camera. Andrews leans over Easter’s right shoulder, his head leans against hers. He sticks out his tongue, they smile cutely and clearly happy.

“You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams,” Andrews captioned the video.

Easter was among those who commented on the photo. “So in love with you,” she wrote, followed by a black heart emoji.

By late Friday afternoon, friends and followers were reacting online to news of their deaths.

“My heart broken” and “I can’t believe it” were among the posted reactions.

It took hours, but crews removed what remained of the charred, wrecked Mercedes-Benz from the highway’s travel lanes.

Various ramps to I-95 at the interchang­e — including the Palmetto Expressway (State Road 826), Florida’s Turnpike and State Road 7 (U.S. 441) — were closed to traffic throughout Friday morning.

 ?? INSTAGRAM/COURTESY ?? Brooke Easter and Troy Andrews, pictured here in an Instagram photo posted on May 9, died in a fiery crash at the Golden Glades Interchang­e early Friday. They were both 21.
INSTAGRAM/COURTESY Brooke Easter and Troy Andrews, pictured here in an Instagram photo posted on May 9, died in a fiery crash at the Golden Glades Interchang­e early Friday. They were both 21.

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