TOMS RIVER – Two people are dead in what can only be described as a bizarre accident involving a vehicle that went airborne into the second floor of a building in the township.
Ocean County Scanner News was the first to report the incident before it became national news with NBC News reporting on the story.
Toms River Township Police Chief Mitch Little told Jersey Shore Online that the vehicle, identified as a Porsche, was traveling at a high rate of speed on the northbound side of Hooper Avenue near Indian Hill Road when it lost control, hit the center median and ended up in the second story of the Exit Realty office at 1466 Hooper Avenue.
Little confirmed officers arrived on scene at around 6:34 a.m on Sunday, November 10.
On Sunday afternoon, police confirmed that 22-year-old Braden DeMartin of Toms River was behind the wheel of the 2010 Porsche Boxster convertible when the crash happened. Both DeMartin and his passenger 23-year-old Daniel Foley of Toms River were both found dead inside the vehicle when police arrived.
Police spokesperson Jillian Messina said Toms River Building Inspector John Gerrity deemed the building unsafe. Also assisting on scene were Ocean County Prosecutors Office, Toms River Fire Company Stations 29 & 30, Toms River Technical Rescue Task Force, Brick Technical Rescue Task Force, Toms River Office of Emergency Management, Ocean County Fire Coordinators, Silverton EMS, and the Ocean County Sheriffs Department.
Hooper Ave between Indian Hill Rd and College Drive was closed for roughly 7 hours between 6:30 AM and 1:30 PM.
[adrotate banner="278"]The accident remains under investigation by Toms River Traffic Safety Officers Robert Westfall, David Bartoshek and Mark Nater.
