Former Miss New Jersey Critically Injured After Driving Car Off Highway

Cara McCollum, 24, wasn't wearing a seat belt when she ran off the road, state police said.
Cara McCollum, seen here in June 2013 shortly after being crowned Miss New Jersey, was critically injured in a single-car crash Monday night, police said.
Cara McCollum, seen here in June 2013 shortly after being crowned Miss New Jersey, was critically injured in a single-car crash Monday night, police said.
Donald Kravitz/Getty Images

A former Miss New Jersey pageant winner is in critical condition after a single-car crash Monday night.

State police say Cara McCollum, who was crowned in 2013 while still an undergraduate at Princeton, wasn't wearing a seat belt when her Ford Mustang convertible ran off State Highway 55 in Pittsgrove Township, New Jersey, at about 7 p.m. McCollum's car reportedly struck three trees in succession.

She was transported to Cooper Hospital in Camden, where she was listed in critical condition, authorities announced Tuesday afternoon.

The 24-year-old from Margate may have been driving too fast for the roadway's wet conditions, state police told the Associated Press. They don't believe drugs or alcohol were a factor.

Cara McCollum, SNJ Today news anchor, is recovering from critical injuries sustained in an accident last evening. Cara...

Posted by SNJ Today on Tuesday, February 16, 2016

McCollum graduated from Princeton in 2015 and now works as a news anchor for SNJ Today.

The news station announced McCollum's injuries on its Facebook page, adding: "Cara is a beloved member of our SNJ Today family. She and her family are in our thoughts and prayers."

The Miss America Organization also expressed concern for her, posting on Facebook: "Please join us in sending thoughts and prayers to Miss New Jersey 2013 Cara McCollum."

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