Charges unfiled in New Jersey truck crash that killed 1

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You probably don't need state transportation officials to tell you Bergen County logged the most motor vehicle accidents of any New Jersey county in 2011. Evidence of accidents is in public view. Statistics help police enforce traffic laws and lawmakers adjust them. Numbers indicate the road dangers drivers face, but crash victims are the only ones who can tell you how accidents changed their lives. A car driver lost his life following a recent Atlantic County truck wreck. Seven victims from several vehicles were injured. The 69-year-old driver, trapped with two Hammonton passengers beneath a tractor-trailer, died from accident injuries after hospitalization. Police said three cars were struck by a semi-truck driven by a 23-year-old Seabrook man. Authorities are investigating whether the 18-wheeler accident occurred when the truck driver blew through a Route 30 red light in Galloway Township. The first vehicle struck was a Toyota Tundra driven by an off-duty, 36-year-old township police officer. Two people, ages 60 and 71, were in the Mercedes Benz the tractor trailer hit next. The last three victims, ages 41 to 69 including the driver who died, were in a Chevy Cruze that flipped and landed beneath the truck. The semi-truck driver also had a 22-year-old female passenger. Charges, if any, will be filed once the truck accident investigation is finished. New Jersey state troopers logged 28 tractor-trailer crashes in 2012, resulting in 32 deaths. Improper driving and inattentiveness accounted for almost all of them. Accidents involving vehicles of unequal sizes and weights can be devastating. Semi-trucks, often weighing tens of thousands of pounds, hit cars with incredible force. Consequently, truck crash victims are likely to be occupants of vulnerable, smaller vehicles. Injured victims and surviving families can seek compensation for losses through state civil courts. Personal injury and wrongful death claims offer monetary comfort for a variety of damages including financial, physical and emotional ones. Source:  galloway.patch.com, "Tractor-Trailer Crash in Galloway Kills One, Injures Six" Douglas Bergen, Nov. 05, 2013