Fire Dept. Worker In Essex County Dies In 3-Car Crash

NEWARK, NJ — A civilian employee with the Newark Fire Department died in a three-car crash in Newark last weekend. The driver of one of the cars involved in the collision – an Essex County man – was charged with vehicular homicide and driving while intoxicated, police say.

The fatal crash took place on Saturday at the intersection of Frelinghuysen Avenue and Meeker Street, according to a joint statement from the Essex County Prosecutor's Office and the Newark Department of Public Safety.

Newark police and fire crews, along with EMS from University Hospital, arrived on the scene around 3 a.m. to find three crashed vehicles and one driver trapped in his car. Emergency responders managed to extricate the unresponsive man; he was pronounced dead at the scene at 3:45 a.m.

The victim was later identified as Jason Edwards, 49, of Newark, prosecutors said.

Edwards was an active civilian employee for the fire department, RLS Media reported.

Authorities charged the driver of one of the vehicles – Colby Dessources of Orange – with vehicular homicide and DWI “based on observations of the police officers on the scene as well as a result to of a preliminary investigation by detectives from the Prosecutor's Major Crimes Task Force.”

A female passenger in Dessouces's vehicle was also injured in the crash. She was treated and released at an area hospital, prosecutors said.

An investigation into this crash is ongoing. Anybody with information can call the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit at (877) 847-7432.

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