New Jersey Turnpike Accident: ‘Carmageddon’ Kills One In Truck Crash [Video]
A New Jersey Turnpike accident was so bad that some have called it a “Carmageddon.” A dump truck spilled out underneath an underpass and became stuck on its side, leaving the truck driver dead, and the traffic was snarled up for hours.
In a related report by the Inquisitr, actor Tracy Morgan was injured in a New Jersey Turnpike accident which left another person dead. But it was not until recently that Morgan spoke about the fatal truck crash.
State police Capt. Stephen Jones said the New Jersey Turnpike accident started when the truck struck the Wood Avenue overpass in Linden near Exit 13A around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday. The resulting fire was feared to have comprised the safety and integrity of the overpass, and all traffic lanes were closed.
“Support beams, which we don’t know if they were compromised by the heat or the fire,” said Linden Police Captain James Sarnicki.
DOT spokesman Steve Shapiro said there were even deactivated power lines which needed to be removed, although this cleanup happened ahead of schedule. The utility company, PSE&G, estimated that industrial customers went without power for a time.
“The truck fire damaged PSE&G’s underground electric facilities and there is heavy damage to electric cables,” PSE&G said in a statement. “Approximately 75 customers are without power. PSE&G crews are on the scene making it safe and will begin work to restore customers as soon as possible.”
The New Jersey Turnpike accident caused massive delays in lanes going both ways. New Jersey Sierra Club director Jeff Tittel was caught up in traffic due to the New Jersey Turnpike crash, and he claimed it had never been so bad before.
“I call it Carmaggedon,” he said, according to the Associated Press.
Smoke from the New Jersey Turnpike accident could be seen from miles away, but most motorists had no idea what had happened.
“It’s terrible,” said motorist Michael Beyer. “Nobody knows what’s going on.”
The standstill was so bad that some exited their vehicles and began sunbathing on the roofs of their cars. Some men were seen throwing a football back and forth in the traffic lanes. There was even one man who broke out the golf clubs and was taking practice swings.
@Bbillingtoncbs that’s me! pic.twitter.com/BvIIgnSCIr
— ?ëxî (@_lexiixo) August 4, 2015
“It was really bad, especially around 12,” said motorist William Lopez. “It was completely stopped; nobody was moving, and I noticed that the cars were trying to cut around the other streets where they’re not supposed to go, so that made it even worse.”
Fortunately, there was no long-lasting effects from the New Jersey Turnpike accident. Engineers inspected the overpass and cleared it for usage.
[Image via New Jersey State Police / Twitter]
