Deer leaps from Route 3 overpass and crashes through vehicle windshield on Route 21
CLIFTON — Police responded to a freak accident on Wednesday morning involving a deer that leaped from the Route 3 overpass and crashed through the windshield of a vehicle heading south on Route 21 in Clifton, police said.
After the deer wound up in the lap of the driver, 45, of a 2016 Jeep Compass, the driver lost control of the vehicle and struck a 2022 BMW X5 and highway barriers. The time of the accident was 7:39 a.m., police said.
"I don't think we've ever had anything quite like this," Clifton police public information officer Detective Lt. Robert Bracken said.
The driver, believed to have only minor injuries, was taken to a local hospital.
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Bracken said the patrol units, after getting medical treatment for the victims, reopened the road. He cautioned that although this incident was unusual, deer can be found throughout the city.
"They are everywhere," he said.
Deer are more likely to run suddenly onto roadways during this time of year — known as the fall rut — as bucks pursue does, risking the possibility of colliding with a vehicle. Increased deer activity is more likely to occur in the early morning and around sunset, when visibility may be difficult.
“Deer are involved in thousands of collisions with motor vehicles in New Jersey each year, with the highest number occurring during the fall mating season,” Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Dave Golden has said. “We urge all drivers to be especially alert to the possibility of deer suddenly darting onto roadways and to be aware of things they can do to reduce the risk of a collision and possible serious injury to themselves or their passengers.”
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Deer leaps from Clifton Route 3 overpass, lands on Route 21 car
