A man died in a car fire after revving his engine trying to get his vehicle unstuck from the snow inside of Losen Slote Creek Park in Little Ferry, N.J. on Wednesday Feb. 3, 2021. Fatal Car Fire
Syndication: The Record
(Little Ferry, NJ)-Police say a 62-year-old public works employee died shortly after 9 am Wednesday when his small Mazda SUV suddenly became engulfed in flames as he repeatedly rocked the vehicle back and forth, revving its engine, in an effort to free his vehicle from a snow embankment.
Little Ferry police responded to a report that a car had jumped a parking divider and gone down a slight embankment near Losen Slote Creek Park.
Police say responding officers, Joseph Montemurro and Joseph Convery tried to make contact with the driver telling him they would call a tow truck. They said he ignored them as he continued to try to maneuver his SUV from the embankment. Officers said they heard a sudden pop with the vehicle quickly becoming engulfed in flames. Officers broke the SUV’s back window in an effort to rescue the man. The vehicle’s doors were locked.
Authorities say official identification of the man is pending dental records.
Police say it did not appear the vehicle’s gas tank had been punctured. The incident is under investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.
