Two injured in head-on crash on Route 70 in Toms River

     (Image courtesy of the Toms River Police Department)

    (Image courtesy of the Toms River Police Department)

    Two men were injured in a head-on collision on Route 70 in Toms River this morning, police said.

    According to Ralph Stocco, Toms River Police Department spokesman, police and medical units responded to the highway just west of Lakeridge Boulevard at 9:50 a.m. 

    A preliminary investigation revealed that Anthony Church, 76, of Manchester was traveling westbound on Route 70 in a 2015 Hyundai Elantra when he was struck head-on by a 2014 Chevrolet Cruze operated by Lawrence Misita, 85, of the Whiting section of Manchester, Stocco said.

    Misita, who was traveling in the Route 70 eastbound lanes, crossed over the center yellow line and crashed into the front-end of Church’s vehicle, trapping both inside their vehicles for a short period of time, according to the spokesman. 

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    Church suffered numerous injuries and was transported by Toms River EMS and MONOC paramedics to the trauma unit at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, Stocco said. Misita was taken to Community Medical Center in Toms River for treatment of a back injury.

    The investigation by Toms River Ofc. Krzysztof Kowalczyk into the cause of the crash or whether there will be motor vehicle charges is ongoing, according to the spokesman.

    As of late morning, officers remain on the scene, and traffic through the area is slow but not diverted. 

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