WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP – A Montrose man los this life in an accident on Interstate 80 early Tuesday morning.
According to the state police, Tony Mataj of Revere, MA was driving west on I-80 in the right lane of travel. He suddenly lost power to his vehicle, a tractor trailer, which came to a stop partially on the road without any lights on. David Wert Sr., of Montrose, failed to observe Mataj’s vehicle in time to avoid it. The passenger side of his vehicle struck Mataj’s vehicle.
Police stated that Wert’s vehicle immediately caught on fire due to a ruptured fuel tank. Wert pulled his vehicle over, which was fully engulfed. A witness attempted to pull Wert from his vehicle, but was unsuccessful.
Jefferson County Coroner Bernard Snyder pronounced Wert dead at the scene.