4 Hurt, Including 2 Kids, When Crash Sends Car Into Trick-Or-Treaters In Bayonne
BAYONNE, N.J. (CBSNewYork) – Four people, including two children, were hurt in a Halloween night crash Wednesday in New Jersey.
Police in Bayonne said it started when two vehicles collided and one plowed onto a crowded sidewalk.
Investigators are working to figure out exactly what caused the crash. They said one car jumped the curb and onto the sidewalk, crashing into Mariaisabel Liriano, her one and five-year-old nephews, and a 17-year-old boy.
Amazingly, all four survived the terrifying ordeal.
It happened just before 8 p.m. at the intersection of Avenue C and 16th Street.
"One of the vehicles that was traveling east on 16th Street up on the sidewalk going westbound," Mayor James David said Wednesday night.
Witness Lisa Deciccio told CBS2 onlookers raced to help the victims pinned under the vehicle.
"We heard people screaming. Before we could say anything, my son-in-law just ran down the stairs," she said. "My son-in-law turned off the car, because it was smoking."
Mariaisabel says she began screaming when she couldn't find one of her nephews, only to realize he was underneath the car.
Deciccio's grandson, Jonathan, also helped with the rescue.
"He'd just seen the baby's feet and he started screaming that. Me and my neighbor, Tony, and him, were a bunch of the people who lifted the car up," he said. "I can't get that image out of my head."
Neighbors said drivers often speed along that stretch.
"This light is a death zone," said Lisa Deciccio.
"A bunch of people were hurt, and it could have been my sister, could have been my brother," Jonathan Deciccio added.
Both drivers claimed they had green lights and the right of way. They both stayed on the scene, and no charges have been filed.
"There were a ton of kids outside, all over the place," said Rivera.
"The weather was beautiful, there was kids our with their parents, with family, trick-or-treating and everything. It was a great day, it's a shame we had to deal with this accident," the mayor said.
The only known surveillance camera that might have captured the moment of impact wasn't recording at the time. Meanwhile, Mariaisabel and her nephews are on the road to recovery as the 17-year-old remains hospitalized with the most severe injuries of the group, including broken bones.
