A passenger car, a loaded fuel tanker truck and a mulch truck collided in a multi-vehicle accident on the New Jersey highways that quickly turned into a raging inferno. The fatal event occurred on Dec. 6 in Union Township.
According to reports, a 24-year-old man from Chatham was driving an Audi A4 off of the Garden State Parkway and into the westbound lanes of Route 78 when he encountered a fully loaded fuel tanker in the same direction. The 35-year-old New York man driving the truck was unable to avoid him and an accident resulted, pushing both vehicles into the path of a mulch truck in the left express lane. The tanker was carrying approximately 9,000 gallons of fuel at the time of impact, and the two trucks reportedly caught fire.
Specialized fire-fighting teams from Newark Liberty International Airport came to the accident to fight the fire with applications of chemical foam. The driver of the Audi was pronounced dead at the scene, but the driver of the fuel truck was able to escape through the truck’s windshield. He was critically injured in the accident and transported to a hospital for treatment. The 53-year-old mulch truck driver was also hurt in the wreck but was later treated and released from a hospital.
People who have suffered truck or car accident injuries may find that their ability to make a living has been impaired, and their economic life has suffered because of the accident. An attorney may be able to help them enumerate their damages and file a personal injury lawsuit against the responsible parties, their estates and representatives.
Source: NJ.com, “Chatham man killed in fiery Route 78 crash, trucker critically injured“, Noah Cohen and Jessica Remo, December 06, 2014