A 68-year-old Warren woman was airlifted to a hospital Tuesday after her car ran a red light on Route 31 in Clinton Township, crossed into the grass in front of a local music shop, and slammed into a tree, according to police. Officers said the driver appeared significantly disoriented and had no awareness of what had just happened when they reached her.
Clinton Township police said the crash unfolded around the intersection of Route 31 and Payne Road, where the woman had been traveling southbound before encountering a red light. According to Daily Voice, her vehicle slowed but continued through the intersection anyway, narrowly avoiding another motorist before veering off the roadway. The car came to rest at 1136 Route 31 North in Annandale after striking a walkway at The House That Rocks and then hitting a tree, police said.
The property where the vehicle stopped is a 1.18-acre commercial lot along the Route 31 corridor featuring a 3,950-square-foot building, according to a Crexi listing for the site. The House That Rocks itself has served as a local family-run business offering music lessons, recording space, and rehearsal rooms for area musicians, according to a Tribute Archive remembrance tied to the shop's founding.
Driver Was Conscious But Disoriented, Police Say
When officers arrived, the driver was conscious and breathing, police said, though she showed clear signs of disorientation. The Clinton Township Rescue Squad transported her before she was airlifted, and emergency medical personnel treated her at the scene, per police. Additional detail on the response came from WRNJ Radio, which reported the driver was flown specifically to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in Somerset for emergency treatment, with South Branch Emergency Services assisting Clinton Township police and rescue personnel at the scene.
Clinton Township police did not announce the crash and the airlift publicly until Thursday, two days after the incident occurred. Whether the driver suffered a sudden medical emergency before entering the intersection, and her current condition following treatment, remain open questions that police have not addressed.
A Corridor With a History of Serious Crashes
This is not the first time Route 31 through Clinton Township has produced a crash serious enough to require air transport. A multi-vehicle collision near Riley and Jake's Restaurant in June 2024 left one person dead and three others injured, WRNJ Radio reported at the time. And in March 2023, a crash at Route 31 southbound and Regional Road seriously injured a 69-year-old man.
The pattern extends beyond Clinton Township's borders. In neighboring Raritan Township, a head-on crash in January 2025 caused severe injuries and required a medevac flight to a regional trauma center, per a report from Robert A. Solomon, P.C. The recurring need for helicopter transport along this stretch of Route 31 underscores the corridor's reputation for severe, sometimes fatal, collisions.
What Happens Next for the Driver
New Jersey regulations give police a formal pathway to flag drivers who show signs of medical disorientation or sudden loss of motor control behind the wheel. Officers can submit Form MR-5 to the state Motor Vehicle Commission requesting a re-evaluation, according to a copy of the form hosted on Scribd. Under state rules described on the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission's website, a driver flagged this way can be required to undergo a medical evaluation within 45 days or face suspension of their license.
Cases like these are ultimately reviewed by the MVC's Medical Advisory Panel, a group of medical professionals who determine whether to issue license restrictions, mandate re-examination, or suspend driving privileges outright, per the same state guidance. It is not yet known whether Clinton Township police have initiated that process in connection with Tuesday's crash.
