More Post-Crash Surgery For N.J. Governor
Gov. Jon S. Corzine faces more surgery on his broken leg, the third operation he's needed since an auto crash left him in critical condition.
Doctors at Cooper University Hospital said the surgery scheduled for Monday will be similar to one they performed Saturday, when they cleaned a 6-inch wound in his left thigh. On Sunday, he underwent a procedure to remove fluid that had collected outside his left lung.
The procedure, which lasted less than 15 minutes, is common for patients who sustain a number of rib fractures, and doctors said it was successful, said the governor's spokesman, Anthony Coley.
Corzine was injured Thursday when the sport utility vehicle he was riding in crashed on the Garden State Parkway in Galloway Township, just north of Atlantic City.
The SUV, which was being driven by a state trooper, was hit by another vehicle that swerved to avoid a pickup truck, sending the governor's vehicle into a guard rail.
No charges are being filed against either of the civilian drivers. The driver of the red pickup truck left the scene, apparently unaware of the accident. The Record of Hackensack reports 20-year-old casino kitchen worker had pulled onto the shoulder when he saw the governor's convoy's flashing lights, but swerved back onto the roadway to avoid hitting a mile marker.
Corzine had been on his way to a meeting at his mansion in Princeton between radio show host Don Imus and the Rutgers women's basketball team.
The 60-year-old Corzine — who apparently was not wearing his seat belt in the front passenger's seat — also broke 12 ribs, his breastbone and suffered a broken collarbone. He also had a head laceration and a minor fracture on a lower vertebra.
Use of seat belts is required in New Jersey.
Corzine remains in critical condition and on a ventilator. Doctors hope to remove the ventilator and let him breathe on his own after Monday's surgery, the Newark Star-Ledger reports.
Family members said he recognized them and responded to visitors when they saw him Sunday.
"When you talk to him, he can recognize your voice, that's my feeling," The governor's eldest son, Joshua Corzine, 30, told the Star-Ledger. "He definitely responds when you let him know who you are."
Joshua Corzine, 30, who spoke to reporters at the hospital along with his sister, Jennifer Corzine-Pisani, 36, and brother Jeffrey, 24, also thanked the medical staff for the care they've given Corzine and thanked well-wishers from across the country. The governor's children and his girlfriend, Sharon Elghanayan, said they were feeling positive about his condition.
"We're giving him the thumbs-up right now, so we're really feeling good about what's happening," Corzine-Pisani said.