The crash closed Route 70 in the area for several hours, police said.
Manchester, NJ
By Karen Wall (Patch Staff) - June 25, 2016 10:24 am ET
Manchester, NJ -- A Whiting man was killed Friday morning when his car and a sod truck collided on Route 70, Manchester police said Saturday.
Theodore Chandler, 87, of Whiting, was killed in the crash that happened about 10:35 a.m., Manchester Capt. Todd Malland said.
Chandler, driving a silver 2013 Kia Soul, was trying to make a left turn from Pleasant Valley Road onto Route 70 west when his car was hit on the driver's side by a red 2000 GMC flatbed loaded with sod driven by Robert Wimbush, 56, of Staten Island, who was eastbound on Route 70 at the time, Malland said.
The force of the impact resulted in both vehicles crossing into the westbound lane of Route 70 and running off the road onto the front lawn of a nearby property, he said.
A photo provided by Manchester Township police shows the impact between a sod truck and a Kia Soul that killed a Manchester man on Friday, June 24.
Both drivers were wearing their seatbelts, Malland said, and Wimbush was not injured. Chandler had to be extricated from his car, Malland said. He was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
The investigation is still ongoing, but driver error on the part of the operator of the Kia appears to be the contributing factor, Malland said.
The road was closed and a detour was established for several hours following the crash. Assisting at the scene were members of the Whiting Volunteer Fire Company, the Department of Transportation Emergency Response Team as well as paramedics from MONOC. Also, assisting at the scene with the investigation were officers from the New Jersey State Police Commercial Vehicle Inspection Team, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit, and the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Patrolman Antonio Ellis and Patrolman Paul Bachovchin of the Manchester Township Police Traffic Safety Unit are investigating.