PHOTOS: Tractor-Trailer Crash, Fire Close NJ Highway

MANCHESTER, NJ — Route 37 in Manchester is expected to be closed in both directions into the afternoon Wednesday following an early morning crash and fire involving a tractor-trailer, authorities said.

Route 37 is closed from Commonwealth Boulevard to Buckingham Drive, the Ocean County Sheriff's Office said in an alert issued about 5 a.m.

The crash and fire happened shortly before 3 a.m., the Whiting Volunteer Fire Company said. Photos published by the fire company also show a car with front-end damage and a deer lying dead on Route 37.

Information on injuries was not immediately available. Firefighters from all three volunteer fire companies responded to put out the fire, the fire company said.

The crash took out a utility pole near the Manchester municipal complex, and telephones are on emergency backup as a result, Manchester Township police said.

Lakehurst Municipal Court, which is held at Manchester's Town Hall under a shared services agreement, has been canceled for Wednesday morning. A decision on Manchester Township municipal court has not yet been made, officials said.

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