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Summer Auto Accident

Summer is the greatest time of the year for many young adults in New Jersey. They are on break from school and have a lot of free time to engage in their favorite warm-weather activities like swimming, fishing, hiking or simply just hanging out with friends. However, sometimes the fun can turn into tragedy. Three young men driving home from a late-night fishing trip on July 2, 2013 were involved in an auto accident in Pohatcong, NJ, which resulted in their truck crashing into the Delaware River.

Police reported that the three teens were traveling on River Road in a pickup truck when they met a car coming the opposite direction. The driver of the truck swerved to avoid the oncoming car, and the truck skidded down the embankment and into the river.

The 18 year-old driver was able to get out of the truck and crawl out of the river to try to get help for his friends. However, the two passengers in the truck, a 19 year-old and a 14 year-old, died before help arrived. The driver suffered broken vertebrae and other injuries.

Authorities noted that River Road is extremely narrow in the area where the accident happened, to the point where it could be considered only one lane. Police thought it possible that the driver of the car that the teens swerved to avoid did not even see the truck, given that it was dark and the road is narrow, and may not have been in the wrong.

The tragic accident is a reminder that everyone needs to take care when behind the wheel. Summer is supposed to be fun, but if people are negligent it is too easy for fun to turn fatal.

Source: 4 New York, “2 Teens Killed When Car Veers off Road into New Jersey River,” Brian Thompson, July 3, 2013