Man Critically Hurt As Driver Passing 2 Vehicles On Rt. 70 Hits SUV Head-On In Manchester

MANCHESTER, NJ — A Mercer County man was critically injured when his vehicle was hit head-on as another driver tried to pass two vehicles on Route 70 in Manchester late Wednesday night, Manchester police said.

Jake Fee, 22, of East Windsor, suffered extensive injuries and was listed as critical but stable at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune on Thursday, Manchester Lt. Albert Vega said.

The crash near milemarker 34.5 on Route 70 was reported at 11:24 p.m., Vega said.

Scott Steward, 61, of Browns Mills, was driving a 2014 Acura MDX west on Route 70 and crossed the center line in an attempt to pass two vehicles, Vega said.

That put Steward's Acura in the path of the 2007 Ford Escape driven by Fee, who was headed east on Route 70 at the time, Vega said.

Both vehicles tried to avoid the collision by swerving toward the eastbound shoulder of the road, but the front driver side of the Acura hit the front driver side of the Ford, he said. The force of the crash caused the Ford to spin clockwise and go into the woods, where the front end hit a tree, Vega said.

The Acura ended up facing west in the eastbound lane of Route 70, Vega said.

Steward suffered minor injuries and refused further medical attention at the scene, Vega said. He had been wearing his seatbelt and the front and side airbags deployed in the car.

Fee was wearing his seatbelt and the Escape's front airbag deployed, he said.

Route 70 was closed for more than 3 hours overnight during the investigation and cleanup.

Manchester Patrolmen Sage Sysol and Michael O'Hara of the department's Traffic Safety Unit are investigating, but driver error while attempting to pass multiple vehicles appears to be the primary contributing factor, Vega said.

Assisting at the scene were EMTs from the Manchester Township Division of Emergency Services, South Toms River First Aid, On-time First Aid, firefighters from Whiting Volunteer Fire Company, Joint Base MDL Fire Company, and Robert Wood Johnson paramedics along with officers from the Pemberton Township Police Department and detectives from the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department Crime Scene Investigations Unit.