Emergency responders working to remove the victims, who were trapped inside their vehicle. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
[This post has been updated since originally posted.]
By JOHN T. WARD
Two people were injured after the vehicle in which they were traveling plowed into a Red Bank office building Thursday morning.
Police Chief Darren McConnell identified the victims as driver John W. Valentin, 50, of Holmdel, and
Divina Valentin, 71, of Hazlet. They were transported to Riverview Medical Center with injuries that were said to be not life-threatening.
The pair were trapped in the vehicle for about 20 minutes before being rescued by emergency personnel.
McConnell said the cause of the crash was still under investigation, but it appeared a medical issue was involved, in which case no charges would be expected.
The crash, on Riverside Avenue/Route 35 at Bodman Place, sent the vehicle through the brick-faced front wall of the former VNA Health Group headquarters at about 10:20 a.m.
That part of the building was vacant, McConnell said. The former Visiting Nurse Association announced in December that it was relocating its operations to Holmdel.
A woman who declined to be identified said she was driving behind the subject vehicle heading north on Riverside Avenue when it began swerving across lane lines and then veered into the building, which is located on a bend in the roadway.
