Fatal Accident: Ocean County Resident Struck on Route 37

Fatal Accident: Ocean County Resident Struck on Route 37

According to Toms River Police Department, on Tuesday night, a man from Island Heights was struck and killed while crossing Route 37 in Toms River.

Jason Matthews, 56, passed away from his wounds after being transported to Community Medical Center in Toms River, according to Lt. Ron Sermarini.

Around 9 p.m., Matthews was crossing Route 37 west of River Drive when he was struck by a 2021 Honda Civic driven by Barnegat resident Frankione Rivera-Rivera, according to Sermarini.

The Honda was traveling west on Route 37 at the time, and Matthews was in the right lane when he was struck, he said.

River Drive does not have a crosswalk.

For several hours, several lanes of Route 37 were blocked in order to conduct the crash investigation, according to Sermarini. According to him, the crash investigation has not resulted in any citations.

With assistance from the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office and the Ocean County Sheriff's Department CSI Unit, Officer Eric Nelson of the Toms River Police Department's Traffic Safety Unit is investigating the collision.