Soldiers Remain Hospitalized As Police Probe Humvee Crash On New Jersey Turnpike

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- Investigators on Friday were still trying to determine what caused a military vehicle to crash on the New Jersey Turnpike, seriously injuring four soldiers.

The U.S. Army Reserve soldiers, part of the 533rd Brigade Support Battalion stationed at Fort Totten in Queens, remain at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital where they were taken after Thursday's crash.

Police said Pfc. Deborah Perez of Brooklyn lost her leg; Sgt. Theodore Jackson of Lincoln Park is in critical condition; Spc. Marcos Santana of Poughkeepsie is in serious condition; and the driver, Sgt. Gedry Concepcion-Munez of Bronx, is in good condition, CBS2's Janelle Burrell reported.

Investigators said the accident happened shortly before 3 p.m. Thursday. The crash caused the Humvee to overturn, landing on its roof and sending debris across the southbound side of the Turnpike near exit 8 in South Brunswick.

Witness Tarr Harris said that he along with others tried to free the soldiers, trapped beneath the wreckage, as they waited for help to arrive.

"All I saw was a military Humvee upside down. It was flipped, it was upside down. So my first instinct was to run over to the scene and make sure everybody was OK, if there was anything I could do or help, I could give," Harris said. "Me and a few other guys that were on the scene were trying to see if we could lift this Humvee."

"Our thoughts and prayers are with these four soldiers and their families," said Lt. Col. John DidDonato, 533rd BSB Commander.

Emergency responders were eventually able to pull the soldiers out from underneath the vehicle. Two medical helicopters landed on the highway, rushing the wounded to the hospital as traffic backed up for 12 miles.

Witnesses said they saw that one wheel of the Humvee was missing after the crash. Investigators are now trying to determine if the wheel fell off before or after the accident.