Toms River Woman Dies In Fiery Route 571 Crash

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A Toms River woman was killed Monday morning in a fiery crash on Route 571, Toms River police said.

Claudine Silvestri, 52, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash that happened about 7 a.m. Monday on Route 571 near Oak Ridge Parkway, said Jillian Messina, media relations specialist for the Toms River Police Department.

A witness told police Silvestri was driving west in the left lane of Route 571 when she suddenly drifted into the right lane and hit a curb and a guard rail. Her vehicle then veered left into the oncoming lanes where she hit a sign truck head on, Messina said.

Silvestri's vehicle caught fire after the crash, and she was trapped inside, Messina said. Police officers and EMTs extinguished the fire and extricated Silvestri afterward, she said.

Along with Toms River Police, Toms River EMTs, Pleasant Plains and Silverton Fire companies, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department CSI, and Berkeley Hazmat responded, Messina said.

Toms River Traffic Safety Officers Mark Nater and Ryan Fitzgerald are investigating.

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