Car Slams Into Tree, Flips, Sending One to Hospital

A 17-year-old passenger was transported to Valley Hospital Friday afternoon after the car he was in struck a tree and rolled over on Van Emburgh Avenue.

Arvind Naravane, 73, of Monroe, NJ, was traveling south on Van Emburgh when the vehicle he was driving suddenly veered into a tree and flipped at about 12:30 p.m.

"It all happened in a fraction of a second," Naravane said at the scene. His Nissan Sentra was totaled in the wreck, with both airbags deploying. Pieces of the vehicle were scattered along the road and on a lawn. 

"I don't know how it happened," he said. Naravane claimed he was driving 20 mph and was not distracted in the moments leading up to the accident.

The 17-year-old boy was taken to Valley Hospital with minor injuries, Ridgewood Police Sgt. Brian Pullman said. No citations have been issued to the driver.

"I'm just glad I was wearing a seat belt," a shaken but uninjured Naravane remarked. "If not, I might be dead. It's scary."

The vehicle was towed from the scene. Ridgewood Fire Department personnel also responded to the afternoon crash.

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