Monroe man found dead in submerged car
Witnesses sought
in weekend accident
North Brunswick firefighters try to remove the 1995 Mercury Sable of Kevin Nolan, 43, of Monroe from a retention pond off Route 1 in North Brunswick Monday.
NORTH BRUNSWICK — Police are still investigating how a Monroe man lost his life when his car left Route 1 and sank in an icy retention pond.
Kevin W. Nolan, 43, of Monroe was found dead in his car at the bottom of the retention pond off Route 1 near the Regal Cinemas complex on Monday morning.
According to police, Nolan was last seen by his wife traveling to a business meeting on Saturday morning.
"He had left his home in Monroe at about 5:30 a.m. to go to a meeting in Princeton," said North Brunswick Traffic Safety Officer George Himmel. "He was then scheduled to go to Old Bridge to work. He never made it to either place."
Police believe that after Kevin Nolan ran over the curb on Route 1, his vehicle ran through this fence before entering an icy retention pond.
While police suspect that drowning may have been the cause of death, the reason for the accident remains a mystery.
Nolan had been taking medication for seizures, according to Sgt. William Kloos of the North Brunswick Police Traffic Safety Division.
"The toxicology report may find out if he had enough of the medication in his system. The autopsy came back, and we are still leaning toward drowning as the cause of death," Kloos said on Wednesday. "He was taking some kind of medication for seizures. The toxicology report will determine the amount of medication in his system. The report will also determine if he had any significant amounts of alcohol in his system."
Nolan had been charged with driving while intoxicated in 1995 and 1996, according to the state Motor Vehicle Services.
Kevin Nolan’s vehicle is removed from a retention pond off Route 1 in North Brunswick on Monday. The Monroe resident was found dead inside his vehicle, which police believe crashed into the pond early Saturday morning.
Himmel said that the accident initially happened when the car went over the curb on Route 1 south.
"The car ran off the right side of the road, striking the curb and then through the fence," said Himmel. "It then went up a 6-foot embankment and continued over the other side until it went into the retention pond."
Himmel also said that he felt Nolan was not conscious when he went into the pond.
"There were no signs of braking or any attempt as far as an evasive action," Himmel said. "We are inspecting the car to see if there was any malfunction. It appears he became unconscious before he hit the curb for an unknown reason. There was no attempt to try to get out of the car."
A witness discovered the motor vehicle on Monday morning, when he noticed that the fence was damaged, according to Himmel.
"At about 8:30 a.m. someone discovered that a chain link fence was knocked down on the southbound side near the Regal Cinemas," Himmel said. "There was a tire track on the bank and small trees were knocked down. The witness thought it was unusual so he drove into the southern parking lot of the Cinema adjacent to Route 1. He noticed a blue roof of a car barely visible in the water. You could see the top of the roof. The pond is as deep as the car."
The area where Nolan’s motor vehicle had the accident is owned by Wilton Partners of California and was once slated to be the location of a ShopRite supermarket, according to Kloos.
The North Brunswick police immediately responded, according to Himmel.
"The North Brunswick Police Department was notified, and we responded," Himmel said. "The water around the car was frozen, and it was an indication that he had been there for a while. We are concluding that he had probably been there since 6 a.m. on Saturday."
Despite the damage caused to the surrounding area, there was no major damage to the car, Himmel said.
"There was no significant damage to the car, and the cause of death still has not been determined," Himmel said. "It is still under investigation; we are still waiting for the results of the autopsy."
Himmel said that Nolan’s wife became concerned when she did not hear from him.
"On Sunday morning, his wife called the Monroe Police Department to report him missing," Himmel said. "However, because he is an adult, he did not fit any criteria for a missing person. He would have to be in danger or have a disability of some type. He was not in danger or a person with a disability. The Monroe Police Department sent out a statewide teletype to locate him."
The Monroe Police Department was able to send out an alternative way of looking for Nolan, according to Monroe Detective Lisa Robinson.
"His wife put out a teletype. It was not a missing person report, it was an attempt to locate," Robinson said. "North Brunswick police discovered the car in the pond Monday morning. He was on his way to a meeting, and he was not in any danger. There are similarities between a missing person report and an attempt to locate. The difference is that with a missing person, you go out and actively seek the whereabouts of this person."
Nolan was likely not sleeping behind the wheel, according to Himmel.
"If he fell asleep, he would have woken up when he hit the curb," Himmel said. "There was no sign of anything that could make him unconscious, and there was no sign of any accident to the car. Speed also does not seem to be a factor. It looks like he was doing the normal speed. We conclude that he was unconscious based on the fact that there was no braking, steering or an attempt to get out of the car. If he was asleep, he would have woken up and tried to get out of the car."
Himmel said that it took a while to remove the car from the pond.
"The North Brunswick First Aid, North Brunswick Fire Department and paramedics responded," Himmel said. "The East Brunswick Police Department dive team also responded. It probably took about two hours to remove the car from the pond. We had to wait for the dive team. The North Brunswick Fire Department was able to get the car out of the ice, and we noticed that there was a body inside."
With the assistance of a tow truck and a cable, the divers were able to get the car out of the pond, according to Himmel.
"The East Brunswick divers went into the water and hooked up a cable to the car," Himmel said. "With the help of George Logan Towing, we were able to winch the car out of the water. Mr. Nolan was found in the driver’s seat unbelted and with both air bags deployed."
Himmel also said that it was difficult to find Nolan.
"I have heard of cars going in ponds before, but this one was in an abandoned work area, so it is hard to see someone," said Himmel. "We usually find out right away when something like this occurs, but at that the point, when he hit the curb, there was hardly anyone on the road. At 6 a.m. on a weekend, there is virtually no traffic. It is very possible that no one saw the incident because there was nobody there at that particular moment."
Nolan worked part time doing telephone research for Q Research Solutions in Old Bridge since November, according to Robinson.
Anyone who has further information on this accident should contact the North Brunswick Police Department Traffic Safety Office at (732) 247-0922, ext. 410.