Three teens injured when truck hits tree BY MICHAEL ACKER Staff Writer SAYREVILLE - Three borough teenagers were injured in a car accident on Karcher Street Monday. The driver of the vehicle, Wade Kosty, 18, was transported by Medivac to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick after his green 1997 Dodge Ram pickup truck struck a tree at 11:48 a.m. Kosty had reportedly lost control of the vehicle on a curved section of roadway and drove across the oncoming lane before the collision. A spokeswoman at Robert Wood Johnson said that Kosty and one of his passengers, Andrew Lardieri, were both listed in fair condition yesterday. The other passenger, Sara Dubinin, was believed to be in critical condition following the accident, according to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office, but the hospital did not have a listing for her yesterday. The passengers were sitting in the front of the pickup truck with Kosty. The speed limit on Karcher Street is 25 mph, but officials did not say whether the driver had been speeding. Borough officials informed the public of the accident at the council meeting later that night. Borough Business Administrator Jeffry Bertrand said the truck hit a large pine tree head on near the intersection of Karcher and Pearl streets. Volunteer firefighters and EMS responders arrived soon after the accident, Bertrand said. He added that the speed with which they arrived allowed them "to provide critical life support at the scene." Members of the governing body expressed gratitude to the first responders. Mayor Kennedy O'Brien said that two helicopters flew in to take accident victims from the scene. "Today was an example of volunteer firefighters at their best," O'Brien said. Borough Councilman Rory Zach described the accident as a tragic event and urged residents to keep the victims in their thoughts and prayers. Zach, a volunteer firefighter himself, recognized first responders for their efforts. "They don't look for accolades," Zach said. "They don't look for anything extraordinary. They really deserve the recognition." The Fatal Crash Unit of the prosecutor's office assisted with the investigation, which will determine whether alcohol, drugs or excessive speed caused or contributed to the crash. No charges have been filed. Anyone with information about the accident is asked to call Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office Investigator Jeffery Temple at (732) 745-3300 or Sgt. John Bartlinski, of the Sayreville Police Department, at (732) 727- 4444.