An 85-year-old driver was hospitalized Tuesday morning after a three-vehicle crash on State Highway 70 in the Whiting section of Manchester.
The collision occurred at approximately 9:43 a.m. near the intersection of Route 70 and Hilltop Road, where Manchester Township Police officers arrived to find all three vehicles heavily damaged and one driver trapped.
According to investigators, a 2002 Dodge Caravan traveling west on Route 70 slowed to make a left turn onto Hilltop Road when it was struck from behind by a 2017 Toyota Camry, also heading west. The impact pushed the Dodge into the eastbound lane, where it collided with a 2016 Hyundai Accent traveling east.
The force of the second impact sent the Hyundai off the roadway and into a wooded area south of the highway, where it came to rest.
Police identified the Toyota driver as a 36-year-old Lakewood resident who was uninjured, and the Dodge driver as a 22-year-old Lakewood resident, who sustained minor injuries but declined medical treatment at the scene. The Hyundai was driven by 85-year-old Roger Striker of Manchester, who was transported to Community Medical Center for evaluation of non-life-threatening injuries.
The roadway was closed for roughly one hour as emergency crews conducted the investigation, extrication, and debris cleanup.
