A nine-year-old boy is currently in critical condition following a five-car accident due to a drunk driver.

This boy sits in an induced coma after his emergency brain surgery in St. Joseph’s Medical Center. This is due to a car accident on Ratzer Road nearby the intersection of Alps Road. The accident occurred around 6 p.m. Thursday, March 23, 2017 while he was on his way to lacrosse practice with his friends. “The accident was caused by a woman who was later charged with a DWI and reckless driving,” says the police of Wayne.  

“Hopefully this tragic accident will be a rude awakening of the consequences of drunk driving, says WHHS junior Gianna Petruccelli.

A Mercedes GLK 350 driving east on Ratzer Road rear-ended a Toyota Sienna while stopped at a red light.  The Mercedes was traveling at a speed to make the Toyota push into three cars in front of it. All vehicles suffered major damage as well as the nine-year-old boy, Matthew Polifonte, while seated in the rear of Toyota Sienna. When police and paramedics arrived, the boy was found unconscious inside the vehicle. He was given immediate attention until being transported to St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Patterson, NJ. The crash is currently under investigation. The boy is currently able to squeeze the doctor’s hand as well as family members’ hands. The young Wayne resident will be going back to Theunis Dye Elementary School when released from the Medical Center. 

The woman who rear-ended the Toyota showed signs of impairment and confusion at the scene of the accident according to the police of Wayne. “This accident shows that we need to enforce more education about drunk driving and the ramifications that come along with it, says junior Ashley Serventi.