He was checking his cellphone when he collided with the stopped SUV at 5.18am on May 8 at an intersection in Pequannock Township, surveillance video shows, according to the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office. — Photo by Lê Minh: https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-hand-on-steering-wheel-977213/
A man driving a garbage truck slammed into an SUV from behind as it sat at a red light, causing flames to ignite and killing the driver, New Jersey officials said.
He was checking his cellphone when he collided with the stopped SUV at 5.18am on May 8 at an intersection in Pequannock Township, surveillance video shows, according to the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office.
Now the garbage truck driver, 45, of Newark, is facing a second-degree reckless vehicular homicide charge, officials announced in a May 8 news release.
The sudden collision instantly caused the man’s Chevy Traverse to catch fire, according to the prosecutor’s office.
The garbage truck driver and a nearby bystander pulled the unconscious man out of the fiery car before patrol officers and first responders tried saving him, the release said.
However, their efforts were unsuccessful as the man was pronounced dead at the intersection, according to officials.
The man who died wasn’t identified by the prosecutor’s office. A post-mortem exam is underway, officials said.
The man driving the garbage truck is in Morris County Correctional Facility and is due in court, according to the release.
Pequannock Township is about 25 miles northwest of New York City. – The Charlotte Observer/Tribune News Service
