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Video shared to YouTube by Transparency Bodycam this week shows the massive police and fire response in Holmdel on Aug. 31, caused by Anthony Hernandez, of North Plainfield.
“I just feel below myself,” Hernandez told officers from the hospital (around the 2-hour mark in the video).
"I'm just happy you’re okay," the officer responded, saying things could've been a lot worse given the nature of the accident.
Hernandez admitted to officers that he fell asleep behind the wheel of the 2022 Jeep Wrangler that was found upside down on the back deck of a Winthrop Court home just after 10 p.m., police said. He still thought he was at the beach after the crash.
An investigation found that Hernandez was heading west on West Front Street in Middletown and approaching the Everett Road intersection when he failed to stop at a stop sign and instead went straight, sending his car off the road. The Jeep hit a traffic sign and went into a wooded area, then continued off the road where it hit an embankment, struck a tree, and went airborne, police paperwork shows.
The car hit one more tree in the backyard of the home before landing on the rear deck of a Winthrop Drive home.
Hernandez was taken to Bayshore Medical Center to be treated for his injuries, where he initially refused a blood draw. A warrant was sought for a blood draw, though,
Hernandez was ultimately charged with DUI, reckless driving, disregard of a stop/yield sign, and traffic on marked lanes.
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