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In a Facebook post, the Dorothy Volunteer Fire Company said it responded to a marine rescue near Estell Manor Park in Mays Landing at around 5:42 p.m. on Sunday, July 28. Four victims were taken to hospitals with their injuries.
A state police spokesperson said 37-year-old Daniel Bollinger of Egg Harbor City was driving an 18-foot boat in the South River. The boat went into a marsh area and hit several trees.
Bollinger left the crash scene before troopers arrived and he later turned himself in at the state police station in Buena Vista Township. He was charged with knowingly leaving the scene of an accident resulting in injury and assault by auto and provided a future court date.
Aerial photos showed a boat stuck in a swampy area and away from open water.
Estell Manor Park is about 1,700 acres and is the most popular park in the county's system, according to the county's website. The park has about 27 miles of hiking trails, a 1.8-mile swamp boardwalk, picnic spaces, campsites, and boating opportunities.
The property was once home to Bethlehem Loading Company, an ammunition plant that operated during World War I.
"The end of production was signified by the removal of all usable steel and iron, such as the railroad tracks and buildings, for use during World War II," the county's website said. "The concrete foundations and the rail beds are all that remain as a silent reminder of American patriotic response to a world crisis."
The crash happened about 10 days after a man died while saving two children from drowning at nearby Weymouth Furnace. Pablo Hernandez Cruz, 49, of Mays Landing, was pronounced dead at a hospital on Wednesday, July 17.
County park rangers and firefighters from Estell Manor and Richland helped at the scene of the boat crash. Paramedics from Hamilton and Buena Vista townships also responded.
State police said the investigation was ongoing.
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