Six Injured In Head-On Collision On Route 539; Road Closed

By PATRICIA A. MILLER (Patch Staff)

Six people were taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center after a head-on collision late Saturday afternoon near milemarker 19 on Route 539, Lacey Sgt. Michael DiBella said.

The accident happened at 5:39 p.m. when a 24-year-old man from Paterson was heading northbound in a Volkswagen Golf on Route 539 in the Bamber Lakes section of the township. He attempted to pass several cars by moving over to the southbound lane and struck a Chevy Trailblazer head-on, he said.

Officers Frederick Anderson and Michael Hein responded to the scene.

The Volkswagen Golf driver and his front seat passenger, a 26-year-old woman from Paterson, were flown separately to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune with multiple internal injuries. A 2-year-old child in the back of the car was taken by ambulance to Jersey Shore as a precautionary measure, DiBella said.

The driver of the second vehicle Trailblazer -- a 46-year-old man from Jackson -- was uninjured. But his front seat passenger, a 54-year-old woman from Jackson, and two 10-year-old children in the back seat suffered minor injuries and were all taken to Jersey Shore, he said.

The Lacey Township Accident Response Team, including Sgt. Robert Flynn, and Officers Adam Ewart and George Resetar responded to investigate. The Manchester Township Police Department, Forked River, Bamber Lakes, Whiting, and Barnegat Township Fire Departments, along with Lacey Township EMS, Lanoka Harbor EMS, Quality EMS, as well as Monoc EMS, Paramedics, and Medevac. In addition the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department CSI also assisted.

Route 539 is currently closed in both directions in the area and the incident is under investigation, police said.