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Details Emerge From Waretown Motorcycle Accident

First hand account of the accident that took the life of a 45-year-old Waretown man.

 

When John Guinta stepped outside his home to light his grill Tuesday afternoon, he had no idea what was about to unfold.

As he lit his grill and waited for it to heat up, he walked around to the front of his house, as he always does, located on the corner of Route 9 and Clearwater Drive. 

"I saw the motorcycle coming down Rt. 9 North as I turned the corner and went back to my grill," Guinta said. 

The next thing he knew, there was a loud crash in the front of his house.

"The first thought I had was 'Oh my god, please don’t let that be the guy on the motorcycle,'" he said. "As I ran out to the front, I saw most of the bike, some pieces and the guy laying in the road."

Guinta said the first thing he did was check the victim, Donald Harrington of Waretown, for a pulse and to see if he was breathing.

"As I ran over to the guy, I had one of the neighbor's call 911. It looked like he had been thrown 30 feet, and his helmet had flown off," Guinta said. "I checked him for a pulse and to see if he was breathing. There was nothing."

Guinta said he helped direct traffic and keep onlookers away until police arrived. He also checked on the other victims involved in the accident.

"I went over to the older couple in the SUV to see if they were okay. I tried to keep them calm as we waited for the police to arrive," he said. "The Waretown police showed up very quickly."

Susan Legander, another neighbor who was at the scene, said she couldn't imagine how Harrington's wife felt.

"I felt bad for his wife, she was brought up here to the accident and police wouldn't even let her see him," Legander said.

Harrington's motorcycle struck a 2004 Ford Taurus that was attempting to make a left turn, police said.

Harrington was thrown from his bike and struck an SUV traveling south on Route 9, police said.

The driver of the Ford Taurus, 47-year-old Frederick Hochstrasser of Waretown, and the SUV, 79-year-old Andrew Marshall of Barnegat, were not injured.

Ocean Township Patrolman Steve Mandarine is investigating.

"I don't think either of us got any sleep last night," Legander said. "Every time you shut your eyes, all you can see is that horrible accident."

"My prayers go out to his family as well as the families of everyone involved. This was a gruesome horrible accident," Guinta said. "It's horrible to see a man like that."

Related Topics: Fatal Accident, Motorcycles, and Waretown

Lanoka Lou

7:15 pm on Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Pretty obvious...WAWA. Look at the pic this is probably the worst "intersection" in Ocean County for WAWA's!People have gotton killed there on bicycles,People plow in and out of these Super Wawa'a all the time in a hurry! God rest his soul...Its Russian Roulete on 2 wheels there!

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JOHNGUINTA

7:48 pm on Wednesday, June 27, 2012

This intersection is one of the worst intersections in waretown.I see very close calls at this intersection everyday. My prayers go out to all involved. My sympathy strongly goes out to the victims wife, your family is in my prayers.

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KP Parsons

11:18 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

It was his daughter at the scene, his wife died last Christmas.

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KP Parsons

11:20 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

A big thank you to you Mr. John Guinta for being a good samitarian ! God Bless.

sherry

9:39 am on Thursday, June 28, 2012

A HUGE THANK YOU Mr. Guinta for your effort to protect the scene until the authorities arrived. RIP Don you were a very dear friend <3 and will be sadly missed :(

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Delores Kurtz

1:00 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

Anyone know if this guys wife is still alive? I heard she died a few months back? I guess you can't believe what you read.

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Michael Masters

4:31 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

Jackie Harrington, Dons' wife, passed away in December. Don is survived by his step daughter Amber who lived with him in Waretown. This time will be especially hard for her as she has lost two parents less than a year. I hope that everyone will send out prayers for her.

JOHNGUINTA

4:13 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

My sympathy goes out to Donalds family and friends for i did not know about his wife who had passed. Our hearts and prayers are with you all.

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Tom Davis

9:40 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

Thank you, Mike Masters and everybody....we would like to pay tribute to the Harringtons...if you have a way to reach out to them, please email me at tom.davis@patch.com

JOHNGUINTA

4:17 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

To the familys involed my heart aches for you all.

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SUSANLEGANDER

4:21 pm on Thursday, June 28, 2012

MY HEART AND SOUL AND PRAYERS EVERY NIGHT ARE WITH DONALD AND HIS FAMILY... SUSAN LEGANDER

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BUGGSY

8:47 am on Friday, June 29, 2012

RIP Don.
CAGE DRIVERS - Please wake up behind the wheel. Slow down, pay attention and MOST IMPORTANTLY STAY OFF THE DAM CELL PHONE. Sad to say but this is another careless act of a driver behind the wheel of a car taking the life of a young great man and leaving his family without.

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