An accident on Route 565 Sept. 4 left a 42-year-old Sussex woman critically injured when her car was hit by a wrong-way driver. According to Sussex County authorities, the section of the roadway where the accident took place lacks road stripes and is in the process of being resurfaced. An investigation into the cause of the accident is still ongoing, and no charges had yet been filed two days after the crash.
According to a New Jersey State Police representative, the 21-year-old driver of a Mitsubishi sedan had been heading south on Route 565 when he crossed into the northbound oncoming traffic and hit the woman’s Saturn head-on. The woman was airlifted to Morristown Medical Center, and hospital officials reported her condition as critical.
The driver of the Mitsubishi was taken to a local hospital, but there is no further information on his medical status. Three individuals, all from Sussex, were passengers in the Mitsubishi. A 23-year-old man suffered a fractured leg and was taken to the hospital for treatment. Two other passengers were injured. One was reported by officials to be in good condition while the other was soon discharged.
In this case, there is little information concerning what caused the driver to go into oncoming traffic. Common reasons are distracted or impaired driving. Another issue is the condition of the roadway. Depending on the accident investigation, someone injured in a wrong-way car accident on an unfinished roadway may have reason to file suit against the wrong-way driver as well as the entity responsible for roadway repairs for expenses due to medical care, rehabilitation therapy, lost time at work and property damage.
Source: NJ.com, “Woman in critical condition after head-on crash in Sussex, State Police say“, Justin Zaremba , September 06, 2014