STAFFORD TWP., NJ – A 17-year-old driver was killed early Tuesday after his pickup truck struck a utility pole and overturned along State Highway 72 in Manahawkin, according to police.

The crash happened around 1:35 a.m. near the intersection of Nautilus Drive. Officers were already responding to a report of a male possibly asleep at the wheel at a traffic signal on Mermaid Drive when they came upon the overturned silver 2005 Ford Ranger.

The pickup appeared to have veered into a utility pole before flipping and coming to rest upside down in the eastbound lanes. Emergency crews found the teen entrapped inside the vehicle, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Stafford Township Volunteer Fire and EMS, Hackensack Meridian medics, and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department assisted at th

See Full Page