6 hurt in head-on crash on Route 47

MIDDLE TOWNSHIP Six people were seriously injured Monday on Route 47 in the Rio Grande section of Middle Township, Cape May County, when the driver of a southbound vehicle apparently lost control of her Ford Taurus and crashed head-on into an oncoming car, police said.

The woman in the Ford was thrown from her car and she, along with five people in the other vehicle - police did not identify its make or model - were taken to area hospitals, said Middle Township Police Captain John Edwards.

Edwards said four medical helicopters were used to transport the victims, who appeared to have sustained substantial injuries in the crash, which occurred near Fulling Mill Road. Some of the victims had to be extricated from the wreckage by rescue teams that arrived on the scene from surrounding communities, police said.

Police closed Route 47 for more than three hours between Fulling Mill Road and Bayshore Road while they investigated the crash scene. Traffic being directed away from the scene along the Cape May County route, which is heavily traveled by shore-bound vehicles, created minor tie-ups throughout the afternoon, police said.

- Jacqueline L. Urgo