A New Jersey man who repeatedly revved the engine of his SUV attempting to free his car from a snowbank died after his car burst into flames, according to police.
Little Ferry police say a public works employee called their office around 9 a.m. to report a vehicle had jumped a parking divider, causing him to become stuck in a small snow embankment close to Losen Slote Creek Park, NBC New York reported. (RELATED: Caught On Bodycam: Officer Saves Woman From Fiery Car)
Officers found the man repeatedly revving the engine and rocking the small Mazda SUV back and forth to try to get out of the snow, ignoring their questions without saying a word before the vehicle quickly caught fire and was engulfed in flameshttps://t.co/sPoFAwIisv
— NBC New York (@NBCNewYork) February 4, 2021
Captain Ronald Klein said when officers arrived on the scene they witnessed the 62-year-old man revving the engine and rocking his small Mazda SUV back and forth to try and get the car out of the snow, according to the local station. Officers told him to stop because there was no way the vehicle could be dislodged without the assistance of a tow truck, which was on its way.
“He was rocking his car back and forth when [the officers] heard a loud noise and then a popping sound,” Klein told the New York Post. “The car was then fully engulfed in flames. They tried to break the windows and were able to break the back passenger window, but by that time the whole car was engulfed.”
Klein confirmed to the Post that officers were unable to save the man in time.
The name of the victim has not been released, but his family has been notified and police are still awaiting dental records before officially identifying him, NBC New York reported.
An investigation is ongoing by Little Ferry police, as well as the Bergen County prosecutor’s office into the official cause of the fire, according to the station. However, authorities said it didn’t appear that the gas tank of the vehicle was damaged by the parking divider.