A Union County crash investigation team spent the early Monday morning hours on the scene of a crash that left one person dead on a highway in Hillside.
According to preliminary reports, emergency responders were called to eastbound lanes of Route 22 near mile marker 57.0 to investigate reports of a crash with possible trapped occupants at the McDonalds restaurant just before 3:45 a.m.
Crews arrived to find a car that was traveling east on Route 22 slammed into the rear of a tractor trailer, pinning the driver inside the severely damaged vehicle.
Medical personnel pronounced the driver dead at the scene.
Police closed then detoured all lanes on Route 22 for the extensive investigation into what exactly caused the crash.
The driver of the truck did not suffer any severe injuries.