Police Believe Bayville Man Suffered Medical Episode in Stafford Crash
Stafford Township Police believe that a Bayville man may have suffered some type of a medical episode that led to a four-vehicle collision on Route 9 near Hilliard Boulevard on Thursday morning, around 7:37.
The responding police officers learned through an initial report that 73-year old Joseph Perez was driving erratically and his 2018 Toyota Tundra was running off the roadway as he was heading south near Southern Regional High School.
Once on scene, police found out that as a result of the erratic driving, Perez crashed into a 2021 Toyota Tacoma driven by Kevin Derosa, 52 of Beach Haven.
Following the initial collision, Perez kept driving and crashed into a 2021 Kia Forte driven by Maria Tagland, 51, of Manahawkin, who as a result, was pushed into a 2016 Honda CR-V being driven by John McCarthy, 78, of Barnegat.
Upon learning what happened and investigating the scene, Stafford Police later determined that Perez was suffering from a medical episode, which resulted in the crash.
Perez and Tagland were brought to Southern Ocean Medical Center for treatment.
Stafford Animal Control took Perez's dog, which he had with him in the vehicle, into their facility for care.
The dog was uninjured in the crash.