STAFFORD – A four car collision happened early this morning on Route 9 near Hilliard Boulevard, police said.
The crash occurred when Joseph Perez, 73, of Bayville, crashed his Toyota Tundra into a Toyota Tacoma driven by Kevin Derosa, 52, of Beach Haven. Perez’s car continued and crashed into a third car, a Kia Forte driven by Maria Tagland, 51, of Manahawkin. As a result, Tagland’s car hit a fourth car, a Honda CR-V driven by John McCarthy, 78, of Barnegat.
The investigation revealed that Perez seemed to be driving erratic and running off the roadway as he was going south on Route 9 near Southern Regional High School. Police later discovered that Perez was suffering from a medical episode, which resulted in the crash.
The northbound traffic was diverted onto Cedar Bridge Road during the investigation for about one hour.
Perez and Tagland were brought to Southern Ocean Medical Center for treatment. Perez also had a dog on board which was uninjured and taken into care by Stafford Animal Control.
