2 HAWTHORNE TEENS STILL IN HOSPITAL INJURED IN WEATHER-RELATED CRASH

By Michael O. Allen and Gregory Beals, Record Staff Writers | Wednesday, March 18, 1992

The Record (New Jersey) | 4 Star | NEWS | B03

Two Hawthorne teenagers remained hospitalized from injuries in what police say was a weather-related, head-on collision in the village last week.

Edward Mullins III, 17, the driver of one of the cars, was in fair condition at Hackensack Medical Center on Tuesday, a spokeswoman said.

His passenger and classmate at Hawthorne High School, Corinne Dockray, 14, was in stable condition in the surgical intensive care unit with head injuries at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark, a spokesman said. A helicopter took Dockray to the hospital after the accident on March 11, police said.

Two of Mullins other passengers, and the driver of the other car and her passenger, suffered minor injuries. Treated at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood and released were Patrick Murphy, 17, and Allison Taylor, 14, both of whom were riding in Mullins car; Judith M. De Boer, 42, the driver of the other car; and Kirk De Boer, whose age and relationship to Judith De Boer were unavailable.

Murphy and Mullins have been friends since the age of 7, when they began playing football together, said Theresa Murphy, mother of Patrick Murphy. Both are members of the Hawthorne High School football team. Mullins is a halfback, Murphy an outside linebacker.

Murphy suffered a few abrasions to the face and required a few stiches, his mother said, adding that he was in shock after the accident and was deeply concerned about Mullins.

“It was very upsetting,” said Theresa Murphy, a 17-year Hawthorne resident. “He didn’t go to school for two days. He’s been at his buddy’s all the time.”

Mullins father, Edward Mullins, said: “My family, my friends, and my faith have kept me going. We are very, very positive right now.”

Students at Hawthorne High School have been kept advised of the condition of their injured classmates. One student said announcements have been made over the public address system.

Mullins had been traveling eastbound on Godwin Avenue about 6:45 p.m. last Wednesday when his car moved into the path of oncoming traffic and struck De Boer’s car at a bend in the road, according to the police report.

Ridgewood Police Capt. Louis Mader on Tuesday attributed the accident to the weather, saying it had snowed and there was a patch of ice in the roadway where the accident occurred.

Richard Sperito, the assistant superintendent of schools in Hawthorne, said: “Unfortunately, I think a lot of times when this happens we say, `Oh, they were speeding, or `Oh, they were drinking. But that was not the case here. It could have happened to you or me.”

Correction: Allison Taylor, one of the six Hawthorne residents injured last week in an accident in Ridgewood, remained in the hospital Friday and was in good condition, a hospital spokeswoman said. A story in Wednesday’s editions said she had been released from the hospital. Also, the name of one of the injured was misspelled. She is Corin Dockray. (PUBLISHED, SATURDAY, MARCH 21, 1992, PAGE a02.)

WIND AND RAIN, BUT NO TORNADO

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Wednesday, January 15, 1992

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page B03

A tornado watch called for North Jersey and parts of other northeast states on Tuesday sent school officials scrambling, but weather officials said no tornadoes were sighted in the state and called off the watch early.

Rutherford school officials put an early end to the school day by sending students home at noon.

Lyndhurst students who normally go home for lunch were kept in school and received a free pizza lunch.

“It’s our feeling that the kids are safer inside our buildings than walking to and from school in a weather crisis,” said Schools Superintendent Joseph Abate.

As it turned out, the tornado watch, which went into effect about 10 a.m., was called off by the National Severe Storms Forecast Center, a division of the National Weather Service based in Kansas City, Mo., at about 1:40 p.m. It originally was to be posted until 3 p.m.

A National Weather Service meteorologist said Tuesday’s storm dumped nearly three-tenths of an inch of rain on North Jersey.

In Wayne, heavy winds toppled a towering pine tree just past noon, and it fell on electric lines on Valhalla Way, briefly cutting off power to some residents and closing the roadway for about an hour, police said.

A Public Service Electric & Gas crew repaired the break and power was restored and traffic allowed to move freely by about 1:10 p.m.
Record Staff Writer David Gibson contributed to this article.

Caption: PHOTO – KLAUS-PETER STEITZ / THE RECORD – In Wayne, storm gusts caused a towering pine tree on Valhalla Way to fall on power lines, briefly cutting off electricity to some residents and closing the street for about an hour.

TRAFFIC HITS THE SKIDS ON ICY ROADS; FREEZING RAIN BLAMED FOR SPATE OF ACCIDENTS

By Ruth Padawer and Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writers | Thursday, January 10, 1991

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page B01

Daylong freezing rain caused dozens of traffic accidents throughout North Jersey on Wednesday, sending cars into guardrails, utility poles, and creeks.
Meteorologists predicted that today would bring some relief.
Sunny weather was expected, with highs reaching the low 40s, but those higher temperatures may cause flooding as Wednesday’s slush melts, said Walter Zamorski of the National Weather Service at Newark International Airport.
In other words, it should be another good day for towing companies.
“A lot of cars are going off the road,” Dave Schick, a driver for Texas Towing in Paramus, said Wednesday. “They have to be winched off the guardrails, hauled out of the woods or off the shoulders and grass medians. When you have slippery weather like this, that’s basically what you get. “
By midday, Schick said, his company had towed 10 cars along the northern end of the Garden State Parkway and replaced blown tires on another seven tires that popped after cars slid into curbs.
The bad driving conditions prompted the Bergen County District for Special Education, which has schools throughout the county, to cancel classes Wednesday, but the Bergen County superintendent of schools, Ray Kelly, said his office knew of no other cancellations or late openings. In Passaic County, Wayne opened its schools late.
Most of the traffic accidents in North Jersey were minor, but in Montville, a 23-year-old Kinnelon man was critically injured when his car slid sideways into an oncoming United Parcel Service truck.
Rescue workers used the Jaws of Life to pry an unconscious Anthony B. Gazzillo out of his black 1984 Chrysler, which was wrecked in the 9 a.m. accident on Boonton Avenue, said Officer Joseph Pitek.
Officials at St. Clares-Riverside Medical Center in Denville listed Gazzillo in critical condition late Wednesday with injuries to his face, neck, and internal organs. The UPS driver, Brian S. Rieger, 32, of Florham Park, was treated and released.
At about 7 a.m., an NJ Transit bus on its way to Westwood from Manhattan slid on Main Street in Ridgefield Park and struck two utility poles, uprooting one of them at Main and Brewster streets. The 15 passengers and the driver all escaped injury, said Jeff Lamb, an NJT spokesman. Another bus picked up the passengers.
An hour and a half later, Francesca Delgado, 37, of Fairview lost control of her car when it slid off Route 46 east in Ridgefield Park. After smashing into a truck driven by Michael Kosenko, 56, of Clifton, Delgado’s car flew over a concrete divider and landed in Overpeck Creek.
Delgado was taken to Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck, where she was treated and released.
The state Department of Transportation arrived at the scene to spread salt and sand, clearing the road by 10:30 a.m. and alleviating minor traffic delays.
In Ridgefield, police weren’t sure whether to blame the weather or engine trouble for the explosion of a DOT snowplow truck, which burst into flames while spreading sand on southbound Route 5. Driver Ella Brown, 35, of Jersey City jumped clear of the truck after she saw fire coming from under the hood and couldn’t get the vehicle to stop, said Ridgefield police Sgt. William Kelly.
The truck careened into the Peek Realty building at 835 Route 5, burning shingles on the outside of the building.
Wayne, which is crisscrossed by major thoroughfares such as Routes 80, 23, and 46, reported an unusually low tally of just five minor accidents by late afternoon.
“We were out there ready for the worst, but fortunately it turned out pretty good,” said police Capt. Walter Suhaka. “One thing that helped us was that public schools and most Catholic schools had delayed openings. That kept traffic off the roadways at rush hour. “
Scattered accidents were reported in other Passaic County communities, including 18 fender benders in Clifton from 5:30 to 10:30 a.m.
Record Staff Writer David Gibson contributed to this article.

Keywords: WEATHER; MOTOR VEHICLE; ACCIDENT

Caption: 1 – COLOR PHOTO – STEVE HOCKSTEIN / THE RECORD – Clifton police checking an accident Wednesday on the Ackerman Avenue bridge. The bridge was closed because of severe icing. 2 – PHOTO – STEVE HOCKSTEIN / THE RECORD – A Paterson man using a box to shield himself from icy rain while shoveling snow on Wednesday.