Heritage Minerals Lake ATV Crash Kills Man, 62: Officials

MANCHESTER, NJ — A Howell Township man died Saturday after the utility terrain vehicle he was riding wound up in the lake at the Heritage Minerals mining site, authorities said Sunday.

James Grover, 62, was a passenger on the UTV that went into the lake about 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer and Manchester Police Chief Lisa Parker said in a joint news release.

A group of people had been riding the vehicles in the Heritage Minerals site when one of the vehicles went into the lake, the group told Manchester police. The driver and other passengers were able to get out, but Grover did not resurface and the group was unable to find him, authorities said.

Manchester police and members of the Manchester, Ridgeway and Whiting Volunteer Fire Companies searched the lake and found the UTV overturned and submerged in 25 feet of water, with Grover attached to it by his safety harness, authorities said.

Grover was removed from his safety harness and Manchester Township Emergency Medical EMTs and Robert Wood Johnson paramedics performed life-saving attempts but Grover succumbed and was pronounced dead at the scene, they said.

His death is a suspected drowning, but authorities were awaiting the results of an autopsy.

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Billhimer said the investigation by the prosecutor's Vehicular Homicide Unit, the Manchester police Traffic Safety Unit and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit is continuing.

The Heritage Minerals site off Route 70, also known as ASARCO, has been a favorite site for all-terrain vehicle riders and the lake, known as Crystal Lake, has been a draw for swimmers for years. No trespassing signs are posted and Manchester police have patrolled entrances, which have been blocked off by gates from time to time, to prevent activities at the site because of the dangers posed by the lake, which resulted from mining activity and does not have a stable bottom.

There have been a few swimmers who have died while swimming in the lake, including a Plainfield man who drowned there in July. Read more: Man Drowns In Heritage Minerals Lake: Manchester Police

"Chief Parker and I would like to commend the heroic efforts of the Manchester Volunteer Fire Company, Ridgeway Volunteer Fire Company, Whiting Volunteer Fire Company, Manchester Township Emergency Medical Services, Robert Wood Johnson Paramedics, New Jersey State Police Aviation Unit, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office," Billhimer said.

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