4 men killed in crash on New Jersey Turnpike in Salem County, state police say
Four men, including three 18-year-olds, were killed in a multi-vehicle crash that led to a fire on the New Jersey Turnpike in Carneys Point Township, Salem County, early Sunday morning, state police said.
The 18-year-olds killed in the crash were identified as Aharon Lebovits and Shlomo Cohen, both of whom are from Lakewood, and Chaim Grossman, who is from Fallsburg, New York, according to New Jersey State Police. The 19-year-old was identified as Yaakov Kilberg, who is also from Lakewood.
NJSP said the 18-year-olds were riding in a Mazda driven by the 19-year-old in the inner left lane heading south, near milepost 1.3, just before 12:45 a.m. At the time, a Dodge pickup truck, driven by 41-year-old Christopher Neff from Westminster, Colorado, was driving northbound in the turnpike's southbound lanes, according to NJSP.
Investigators said the Dodge and the Mazda crashed into each other head-on. After this initial collision, a tractor-trailer riding in the right lane behind the Mazda then struck the car with the teens inside, NJSP said.
The impact of the multi-vehicle crash killed Kilberg, Grossman, Lebovits and Cohen. Neff was also seriously injured, NJSP said. The tractor-trailer driver was not injured.
Carneys Point Fire Department and Rescue Squad thanked the first responders for their diligent and careful rescue efforts, as they had to extricate some of the victims involved in the crash. The department also said that one of the vehicles struck by the tractor-trailer caught fire after the collision.
Anyone who may have seen the crash or the Dodge Ram driving in the wrong direction is asked to contact Troop D Moorestown Station detective bureau at 609-860-9000 ext. 3226.