Fatal Drag Race

[nj96z28]

In North Bergen on Secaucus Ave. tonight. 1 honda and other car was called an import were drag racing . 85 mph in a 25 mph. The Honda plowed into a Blazer with 2 old ladies in it. 4 people are dead (all under 20) and a 49 yr old woman . Not even I will make a ricer joke on this one :cry:

[Kid Racer]

Thats messed up that sounds like what happin to my brother last year on Jan.30.07 ..Sorry to hear about that..

[shane27]

****ing morons didnt just take their own stupid lives they took others... hope they rot in ricer hell

[Fast92RS]

Yeah I watched that on the news. What a mess. There was nothing left of those cars that hit each other.

[chrisfrom nj]

i saw that too the honda look like it was cut in half

[BonzoHansen]

Great. 2 jackasses will bring more heat down on car enthusiasts everywhere.

So sad for the innocent victims.

[BonzoHansen]

http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1199684114309070.xml&coll=1

Three dead in two-car accident in Hudson
Probers cite third vehicle and possibility of a race
Monday, January 07, 2008
BY CLAIRE HEININGER AND SULEMAN DIN
Star-Ledger Staff

Two Jersey City teenagers and a 79-year-old Woodbridge woman were killed in a horrific two-car accident in Hudson County yesterday, and police are investigating whether drag racing may be to blame, authorities said.

The crash occurred when a Honda Accord occupied by the 18- and 19-year-old men, who knew one another from the Coptic church, crossed the double-yellow line of a North Bergen road, striking a Chevrolet Blazer with a Woodbridge mother and daughter inside, police said. The Accord was exceeding the road's 25-mph speed limit, and police are investigating whether it was drag racing with a third vehicle that was not involved in the wreck, North Bergen police officer Lou Stitzer said last night.

There were no indications that alcohol or drugs were a factor in the crash, Stitzer said.

"It's just an unfortunate, terrible, horrific accident," he said.

Killed instantly were George Ghebrial, 19, Mena Shafek, 18, and Maria Layton, 79, who was in the Blazer's passenger seat, police said. Her 54-year-old daughter, Doris Etchegaray, was taken to Jersey City Medical Center, where she was undergoing surgery for non-life-threatening injuries last night, authorities said.

Both recent immigrants from Egypt -- Ghebrial had been in Jersey City for two years, Shafek for one -- the teens lived within a block of each other and grew close as deacons at the Coptic Orthodox Church of Saint Mark's, where parishioners learned of the tragedy last night as they filled the halls for Christmas Eve services. The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas today.

"(Ghebrial) was a good deacon. He was very good singer," said Khalid Sadiq, the Sunday school teacher at the church. "He had a very good voice. He was very funny. He was very active."

Ghebrial had graduated from William L. Dickinson High School in June, worked as a security officer and was dreaming of college. On his MySpace page, he wrote that he missed friends in Egypt and wanted to see Greece. As a goal for the coming year, he wrote, "to find a real love."

Shafek, who had completed high school in Cairo, had enrolled in ESL classes at Hudson County College and worked as a waiter alongside his father at a North Bergen restaurant.

"He was well-behaved. Everybody loved him," said Ishraf Soliman, a co-worker who stood with a group of friends outside Shafek's home last night, smoking cigarettes and grasping for more details of the crash.

Authorities, too, were unsure last night why the Accord veered into the oncoming lane of traffic, and had interviewed the occupants of the third car, which "might've been a contributing factor" to Ghebrial's car's actions, Stitzer said. He said police believe drag racing "could be a possibility."

Other specifics of the accident remained unclear, including what brought the victims together on a long stretch of Secaucus Road that runs through three municipalities: Jersey City, Secaucus and North Bergen.

Knicknacks found strewn inside the women's car indicated the pair, who lived in the Fords section of Woodbridge, had been on a flea market trip, which was a "hobby of theirs," Stitzer said.

It is unknown why the Jersey City teens were on the road, Stitzer said, but friends said they were shopping.

"This is a heavy loss," he said. "It's a horrible thing."

[qwikz28]

i know the kids through others. they were fellow egyptians. they were from jersey city and they attend the coptic church on westside avenue. i heard about this because my girlfriend's father is the priest at that church. last night was our Christmas liturgy because our church follows the alexandrian calendar which is essentially the julian calendar. they spent their last hours with my girlfriend actually. whatever, i have no pity for them.

[98tadriver]

Great. 2 jackasses will bring more heat down on car enthusiasts everywhere.

So sad for the innocent victims.

You said it man.. STUPID F$%#$% RICER PIECES OF S#$%#$% cause so much crap these days. And its a goddarn shame innocent lives had to be taken in the process

"1 honda and other car was called an import were drag racing . 85 mph in a 25 mph"


Im surprised they manged to hit 85 mph in a 25 zone. usually 25mph zones are short.


Stupid BS like this P's me off soo bad. I just want to yell NNAAWWZZ at them and watch their cars explode. Im so glad that i am out of the ************ scene!!!!!!!!!!

[qwikz28]

You said it man.. STUPID F$%#$% RICER PIECES OF S#$%#$% cause so much crap these days. And its a goddarn shame innocent lives had to be taken in the process

"1 honda and other car was called an import were drag racing . 85 mph in a 25 mph"


Im surprised they manged to hit 85 mph in a 25 zone. usually 25mph zones are short.


Stupid BS like this P's me off soo bad. I just want to yell NNAAWWZZ at them and watch their cars explode. Im so glad that i am out of the ************ scene!!!!!!!!!!

trust me, those guys aren't into street racing. i'd be surprised if that car was theirs and not their parents. just a friendly contest by two unexperienced drivers coming from a country where this kind of stuff isn't too out of the ordinary

[BonzoHansen]

trust me, those guys aren't into street racing. i'd be surprised if that car was theirs and not their parents. just a friendly contest by two unexperienced drivers coming from a country where this kind of stuff isn't too out of the ordinary

Yeah, just dumb kids. We all know them, even been them ourselves.

When you young guys wonder why your insurance rates are so high, it because you almost never hear stories like this for ‘older’ guys. As a young driver you have no history, good or bad, so you are judged based on the collective actions of your peer group and the level of risk is calculated accordingly. And this kind of thing sure skews the risk calculations. And it always will. What young guys do doesn’t change, just the names.

[qwikz28]

yup... its a sad tale, but sadly no one will ever learn from it. and ironically many of those casting stones in this thread have done equally dumb things in their day. its like one of those sayings that you only "broke" the law if you got caught. they are looked down upon cause they ended up colliding with another car

[DaSkinnyGuy]

One of the victims of which car I do not know, was related to a kid that goes to school with me in Hopatcong. Small world, his mom was on channel 4 news last night at 11pm mrs. yaroswicz.

[98tadriver]

yup... its a sad tale, but sadly no one will ever learn from it. and ironically many of those casting stones in this thread have done equally dumb things in their day. its like one of those sayings that you only "broke" the law if you got caught. they are looked down upon cause they ended up colliding with another car

I've done my fair share of irrational things. (not 85 in a 25 on a 2 lane road or near intersections though..) Ive gone fast, and street raced. The only difference is, i never wrecked or killed anybody :)

[qwikz28]

I've done my fair share of irrational things. (not 85 in a 25 on a 2 lane road or near intersections though..) Ive gone fast, and street raced. The only difference is, i never wrecked or killed anybody :)

yeah me either. i don't know if its because we were a little wiser with our stupidity (if that makes sense) or if we're just blessed. i think it's the latter for me at least

[79CamaroDiva]

i think what bothered me most about that article was a) they killed a poor old woman, and b) the stupid newspaper called it drag racing.. I wish that reporters would get their stories straight, especially on soemthing as publicized as a fatal street racing crash

[BonzoHansen]

I've done my fair share of irrational things. (not 85 in a 25 on a 2 lane road or near intersections though..) Ive gone fast, and street raced. The only difference is, i LUCKILY never wrecked or killed anybody :(

Fixed. And the same can be said for many of us here.

[WildBillyT]

b) the stupid newspaper called it drag racing.. I wish that reporters would get their stories straight, especially on soemthing as publicized as a fatal street racing crash

I had a reply typed up saying the same thing but I forgot to submit it. When they call it "drag racing" all it does is make organized drag racing look bad.

[BonzoHansen]

I sent a letter to the editor. Nothing will happen, but I did anyway.

I was saddened by the story of the elderly woman killed because of the reckless antics of two teenaged boys. What they did was stupid and irresponsible, and in no way can their actions be condoned. The number of lives they impacted forever is incredible. And unfortunately it happens all too frequently.

That being said, those boys were not drag racing. Drag racing is a legitimate sport that is done within the safe confines of a race track, with layers of safety rules to protect both drivers and spectators. What those boys were doing had neither. We are blessed that in NJ we have 3 high quality tracks; Island Dragway in the north, Raceway Park in the central part of the state, and Atco in the southern end of the state. These tracks, which are open to the public much of the year, encourage a safe way to race.

Next time, please don’t shed a negative light on a legitimate sport. All that does is sully the reputation of the law abiding people that keep racing on the tracks. Call an event leading to a tragedy like this what it really is, illegal street racing, with the emphasis on illegal.

Maybe it is time for some stories about real drag racing. Perhaps if the right way to race was better publicized, some lives might be saved.

[79CamaroDiva]

I sent a letter to the editor. Nothing will happen, but I did anyway.

I was saddened by the story of the elderly woman killed because of the reckless antics of two teenaged boys. What they did was stupid and irresponsible, and in no way can their actions be condoned. The number of lives they impacted forever is incredible. And unfortunately it happens all too frequently.

That being said, those boys were not drag racing. Drag racing is a legitimate sport that is done within the safe confines of a race track, with layers of safety rules to protect both drivers and spectators. What those boys were doing had neither. We are blessed that in NJ we have 3 high quality tracks; Island Dragway in the north, Raceway Park in the central part of the state, and Atco in the southern end of the state. These tracks, which are open to the public much of the year, encourage a safe way to race.

Next time, please don’t shed a negative light on a legitimate sport. All that does is sully the reputation of the law abiding people that keep racing on the tracks. Call an event leading to a tragedy like this what it really is, illegal street racing, with the emphasis on illegal.

Maybe it is time for some stories about real drag racing. Perhaps if the right way to race was better publicized, some lives might be saved.

very well written scott!

[qwikz28]

i'm trying to contact the friends of the youth that caused the accident. unfortunately, i will be away as of tomorrow morning but i am trying to explain to them that it would be appreciated if they approached the other family and offered their condolences. attending the funeral of the passenger and visiting the driver of the SUV in the hospital certainly won't, right what happened; but God willing will ease the pain and negativity that family may have towards those two boys and the Coptic community.

[98tadriver]

yeah me either. i don't know if its because we were a little wiser with our stupidity (if that makes sense) or if we're just blessed. i think it's the latter for me at least

yeah man they both make sense to me. I figure when its my time to go, its my time to go. (that doesnt mean i will attempt wheelies in head on traffic or in traffic on my bike though lol)

[98tadriver]

Fixed. And the same can be said for many of us here.

thanks! those darn buttons are right next to each other. i had so much going on that i didnt even realize that typo

[deadtrend1]

thanks! those darn buttons are right next to each other. i had so much going on that i didnt even realize that typo

His fix was adding "luckily" in the last sentence

[Tru2Chevy]

I sent a letter to the editor. Nothing will happen, but I did anyway.

I was saddened by the story of the elderly woman killed because of the reckless antics of two teenaged boys. What they did was stupid and irresponsible, and in no way can their actions be condoned. The number of lives they impacted forever is incredible. And unfortunately it happens all too frequently.

That being said, those boys were not drag racing. Drag racing is a legitimate sport that is done within the safe confines of a race track, with layers of safety rules to protect both drivers and spectators. What those boys were doing had neither. We are blessed that in NJ we have 3 high quality tracks; Island Dragway in the north, Raceway Park in the central part of the state, and Atco in the southern end of the state. These tracks, which are open to the public much of the year, encourage a safe way to race.

Next time, please don’t shed a negative light on a legitimate sport. All that does is sully the reputation of the law abiding people that keep racing on the tracks. Call an event leading to a tragedy like this what it really is, illegal street racing, with the emphasis on illegal.

Maybe it is time for some stories about real drag racing. Perhaps if the right way to race was better publicized, some lives might be saved.

Very well said....maybe it will be read by the right person and some change will take place.

- Justin

[zuuhlsT/A]

Very well said....maybe it will be read by the right person and some change will take place.

- Justin

I wish it was that easy. Excellent points in your letter and I definately agree. But unfortunately there are about 10 stupid racers to every intelligent one. The media and politicians will grab this and break out the soap boxes to saturate the TV with thinking all racing and high performance cars are to be known as " The Devil " and our lives will be that much more difficult. It's just a shame that lives were lost in that " drag race ". I don't condone street racing but we've all done it and still some probably do.We were lucky (or skilled) when we did it, those kids that died were not. You can't just blame the teens for all this. I know a couple that can throw their car around like pros. Its got nothing to do with age. You can wise or stupid whether your young or old. Stupid usually ends up dead or having to carry around the fact that they killed or maimed someone because of their recklessness.:nod:

[firebirdcrazy]

TRU2Chevy That is one great letter and I am glad you sent it. You are absolutely right and I never even thought of that till now after reading so many stories like this. I will do the same if I see it again myself in some paper.

[firebirdcrazy]

I also think that if we as a club and individually all wrote to a new agency the same way I am sure we would be heard.

[Tru2Chevy]

TRU2Chevy That is one great letter and I am glad you sent it. You are absolutely right and I never even thought of that till now after reading so many stories like this. I will do the same if I see it again myself in some paper.

Thanks, but I didn't send it....BonzoHansen did.

- Justin

[firebirdcrazy]

oops My compliments to BONZOHANSEN Great Letter!!!

[84HOtransam]

Did it mention anywhere what time of day it was?

[qwikz28]

it was afternoonish jan 6th