2 Die, 4 Injured In Truck Crash And Fire On I-80 In Bergen County: NJ Police

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — Two people have died and four more were injured in a fatal truck crash on Interstate 80 in Bergen County early Wednesday morning, state police said.

The two people who died have not been identified, said the New Jersey State Police said Wednesday, but two of those seriously injured were identified as men from Texas in their 60s.

Police said that shortly after midnight, a Toyota SUV was traveling eastbound on I-80 near milepost 66.6 in Hackensack when it struck a curbed median. It then entered the express lanes and hit a Volvo tractor-trailer.

The Volvo tractor-trailer then struck the center concrete median and entered the I-80 westbound express lanes, said the New Jersey state police.

Now in the westbound lanes, the tractor-trailer hit an Isuzu box truck, causing the box truck to cross lanes and burst into flames.

A GMC SUV then struck the tractor-trailer.

As a result of the crash, the driver and passenger in the box truck sustained fatal injuries, police say. They have not been identified.

The driver of the Volvo tractor-trailer, a 63-year-old man from Temple, Tex., and the passenger, a 60-year-old man from Killeen, Tex., sustained serious injuries and were taken to an area hospital, police said.

The driver and passenger in the GMC SUV sustained minor injuries, police say.

"The crash remains under investigation, and there is no additional information available at this time," police said.

Traffic Tied Up 'Most Of The Day'

The crash and truck fire tied up traffic on both sides of the highway through Wednesday morning, according to the state Department of Transportation. They said crews and investigators may keep traffic tied up for most of the day.

The DOT said, "I-80 eastbound and westbound express lanes and I-80 westbound local lanes are closed between the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway due to a major crash between the Hackensack River and near Exit 66/Hudson St/Hackensack/Little Ferry. I-80 eastbound local lanes are open. In addition, the ramps from the New Jersey Turnpike to I-80 westbound are closed. Crews are working to reopen lanes as soon as the accident cleanup and crash investigation allows."

They added:

NJDOT is activating the 511NJConnect system to advise motorists stuck in traffic because of the incident. 511NJConnect is not a substitute for calling 9-1-1 if a motorist has an actual emergency in their vehicle.

Motorists are advised to avoid the area and seek alternate routes, such as Route 46. Expect congestion and delays in the area through the day as crews complete the crash investigation and repair damage to the concrete median.

Motorists are encouraged to check NJDOT’s traffic information website www.511nj.org for construction updates and real-time travel information. For NJDOT news follow us on X (Twitter) @NewJerseyDOT and our Facebook page.