Series of accidents kills 1, closes Pike

Published in The Trenton Times:

Friday, September 16, 2005

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP - A Middlesex County man was killed during a series of accidents involving 20 vehicles - half of them tractor-trailers - that shut down a portion of the New Jersey Turnpike during evening rush hour yesterday.

Five accidents, four in the southbound lanes and one in the northbound lanes, took place between 2:30 and 4 p.m. south of Interchange 8 here, according to state police and a Turnpike spokesman.

The fatal collision occurred about 2:35 p.m. along the Turnpike's southbound side at milepost 64.2 when a vehicle driven by Lawrence Aronberg, 34, of East Brunswick, slammed into the rear of a tractor-trailer, said Trooper Jeanne Hengemuhle, a state police spokeswoman.

Aronberg's vehicle was then struck from behind by another tractor-trailer, she said.

Aronberg was killed almost instantly and was trapped in the mangled wreckage of his vehicle. His body was extricated by firefighters from Hightstown and Washington Township.

Details were not available from the state police last night about the other four crashes. Among the vehicles involved in those collisions were a tractor-trailer that veered off the road and flipped onto its side and a car that was so badly damaged that rescuers had to cut away both doors and the middle post on the driver's side to free the trapped occupants.

A state police medical helicopter landed on the Turnpike and flew a seriously injured accident victim to a local trauma hospital.

Southbound traffic soon came to a standstill because of the accidents, with a backup of more than 10 miles reported at one point.

Southbound traffic was diverted off the Turnpike at Interchange 9 in East Brunswick at 4:15 p.m.

Meanwhile, rescuers finished caring for the injured, state troopers investigated and road crews worked to clear the wreckage.

Traffic on the northbound lanes backed up for about four miles because of the one accident on that side and motorists slowing to look at the chaos on the southbound side.

The southbound lanes were reopened about 7 p.m., said Turnpike Authority spokesman Joe Orlando.

Published in the Trentonian on 09/16/2005

Highway horror

VICTORIA ST. MARTIN

Trentonian Staff Writer

WASHINGTON TWP. -- The New Jersey Turnpike was riddled with five accidents involving 20 vehicles yesterday, shutting down a 4-mile stretch of the highway and killing one motorist, officials said.

Like dominoes falling in succession, the accidents occurred near Interchange 8 in Washington Township in the southbound and northbound lanes of the highway between 3 and 4 p.m.

One motorist was killed in the sequence of accidents, in a three-vehicle collision, said Jeanne Hengemuhle, a turnpike spokeswoman.

Lawrence Aronberg, 34, of East Brunswick was traveling in the highway’s southbound lane near Interchange 7A at 2:30 p.m. yesterday when he rear-ended a freight liner tractor-trailer, driven by Patrick Muchiri, 42, of Linwood, Pa.

After the initial impact, authorities said, another freight line tractor-trailer, driven by Wendell Tolbert, 44, of Paterson,subsequently rear-ended Aronberg’s 2000 Volkswagen.

Aronberg’s car was trapped between the two tractor-trailers and area rescue teams had to extricate him.

Officials said Aronberg was pronounced dead at the scene. The Mercer County Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy today.

Following the fatal accident, a series of four separate accidents occurred on the turnpike.

Authorities said the accidents were not due to the earlier fatal accident, and were rather the result of slow traffic and slippery roadway conditions from yesterday’s afternoon rainfall.

Another motorist was injured in the series of accidents and was transported to an area hospital. Officials, as of press time, had no further information.

Southbound traffic was diverted off the turnpike at Interchange 9 in New Brunswick, as road crews worked to clear the wreckage

Traffic on the northbound lanes was backed up for about 4 miles.

The turnpike was re-opened around 7 p.m. yesterday in phases, officials said, to avoid a backlash of traffic.

-- The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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From WPVI CH 6:

20 Vehicles Involved

September 15, 2005 - Traffic flow is now back to normal on a stretch of the New Jersey Turnpike in Mercer County.

A series of accidents involving 20 vehicles -- half of them tractor-trailers -- had shut down the roadway for about four hours today in the area of Interchange Eight in Washington Township. And that caused extensive delays and backups during tonight's evening commute.

Four of the accidents occurred in the southbound lanes this afternoon and one in the northbound lanes. Southbound traffic was diverted off the roadway at Interchange nine, while backups of more than four miles were reported in the northbound lanes.

One person was killed in one of the accidents, but further details weren't available.

ABC-Chopper 6 Video

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From CBS Chopper 3

(CBS 3) TRENTON The southbound lanes of the New Jersey Turnpike are shutdown due to a multi-vehicle, chain reaction accident that left at least one person dead and many motorists stranded for hours.

The crash, which happened around 3:30 p.m., Thursday, in the southbound lanes of the Turnpike at Exit 7A in Washington Township, Mercer County, has caused a 22 mile backup.

CBS 3's Anne-Marie Green says there were at least eleven separate accidents scenes with numerous vehicles involved and several overturned tractor trailers.

Officials say one person has been confirmed dead and two people are hospitalized in critical condition. The exact number of injured victims is unknown at this time.

The southbound lanes of the Turnpike remained closed for almost four hours while emergency crews worked to clear the scene. An investigation what caused the crash is underway.

Traffic on the New Jersey Turnpike has now resumed to normal.

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From NBC Chopper 10