South Jersey man killed when pickup hits tree
By Matt Gray | For NJ.com
on September 12, 2015
DEPTFORD TWP. —
A Sewell man was killed early Friday in a one-vehicle accident on Route 55, according to state police.
John P. Dempsey (Smith Funeral Home)
John P. Dempsey, 19, was traveling northbound shortly before 6 a.m. when he lost control of his Chevy pickup, according to New Jersey State Police Sgt. First Class Gregory Williams.
The truck left the roadway and struck a tree at mile marker 56.8, Williams said.
Dempsey was unresponsive when police and EMTs arrived on the scene. He was transported to Cooper University Hospital, Camden, where he was later pronounced dead.
Police do not yet know why Dempsey lost control of his truck, Williams said. The crash remains under investigation. This are of NJ-55 is fairly straight; it is four lane divided highway. Most likely this young man was speeding or fell asleep or was on drugs/drunk. We shall see what the autopsy results show.
Hydroplaning or aquaplaning happens when the tires of a
vehicle lose traction on a wet roadway, causing the car to drift like a sled
until the wheels gain traction again. As a person might imagine, this situation
is extremely dangerous, since the vehicle is out of the driver's control while
it slides. During rainy or slushy weather, drivers need to be aware of the risk
of hydroplaning, and it is important for them to drive carefully in these
conditions to avoid this dangerous driving situation. When tires travel too quickly, they cannot
push water away quickly enough, and they may start skidding on the surface.
In rainy conditions, people should drive slowly, because
high speeds increase the danger of hydroplaning. Drivers should also avoid
pools of water and puddles on the roads, as they can be deeper than they look
and could cause problems with traction. Drivers should be especially careful on
bridges, since water often pools on one section of the bridge. It is also
important to keep tires properly inflated, which increases the potential for
traction.
If a driver's vehicle starts hydroplaning, s/he should not
jerk on the wheel or slam on the brakes. While a car has no traction, the
driver has little control over its trajectory, and these actions can cause the
vehicle to move violently and potentially dangerously.
When the rear end of a vehicle or aircraft slides back and
forth, this is known as fishtailing. Typically, fishtailing is the result of a
loss of driver control. The risk of
fishtailing also increases at high speeds, or when a driver brakes very
suddenly.
Based on the evidence we have to date, this young man slammed onto his breaks because he was speeding, he lost
control on a very wide highway early in the morning and slammed onto trees. The skid marks show that he applied sudden
break pressure, most likely to alleviate the wet road conditions and his
speed. As a result, he lost control and
slammed onto the trees. There is question that he was speeding for the road conditions. People speed in that area and certainly at 6:00 am in the morning.
Our opinion is that he was going too fast for the wet road
conditions. Millions of people drove
during that day (September 11, 2015) but very few got killed slamming their vehicles onto trees in a single vehicle accident. He was a young fellow, obviously
inexperienced in the very dangerous road conditions when it rains. We do not want to also eliminate the
possibility of drugs or alcohol or medical condition. That is why we said we must wait to see what
the autopsy results show and not to rush into conclusions.
Although his young life was taken, it could be used as a
reminder to the rest of us to drive safely during wet road conditions. People drive like maniacs in this state and other states,
constantly violating speed laws, signaling laws, and so on.
Dempsey, a 2014 Clearview Regional High School graduate, was working in an apprenticeship for Steamfitters Local 420 in Philadelphia, according to his obituary. He was currently working for Five Star Mechanical in Philadelphia.
Many of his former Clearview classmates took to social media to express their shock at Dempsey's death and to send condolences to his family. Several described him as a good friend and a happy, caring individual.
A funeral service will be held Wednesday, Sept. 16, at Smith Funeral Home, 47 Main St., Mantua. Viewings will be held from 5-8 p.m. Tuesday and 10-11 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.