Manchester Officer Responding to Crash Hurt in Another

A Manchester Township Police officer who was headed to the scene of one of 21 car accidents in the township wasn't seriously hurt when his patrol car slid off the road and hit a pole Friday morning, police said.

Ptl. Richard Conklin was headed down Route 539, where numerous accidents had been reported through Whiting and into Lacey Township, when his car slid off the road near McMahon Avenue and smacked into a utility pole, police said.

Conklin was taken to Kimball Medical Center in Lakewood for treatment, police said, and was released later in the morning.

Most of the 21 accidents, which all occurred between 6:30 and 9:30 a.m., throughout the township didn't result in any injuries, police said—only four people were reported hurt.

Assisting members of the Manchester Township Police Department at Conklin's crash were sheriff’s officers from the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department.